


Out of the Blue

by elsewherewolf



Category: Pacific Rim (2013)
Genre: Character Deaths, Herc/Raleigh/Scott is the main relationship in this fic, Incest, M/M, Magic, Pan-Pacific Drifting Circus, Polyamory, Threesome, circus AU, multi-chapters
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-08-24
Updated: 2014-11-02
Packaged: 2018-02-14 12:52:22
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 6
Words: 22,507
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/2192532
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/elsewherewolf/pseuds/elsewherewolf
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>After the death of his brother, Raleigh's looking for a way out of his life.  The Ark - full of the characters and oddities that make up the Pan Pacific Drifting Circus, seems to be just the ticket.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. The Ark

**Author's Note:**

> I've decided to split this fic into chapters, hope nobody minds that! The beautiful art created to go with this fic was inspired by something that occurs in this first chapter. :) You can see it here: http://libertinem.tumblr.com/post/95548632540/my-art-for-the-pacific-rim-rare-pair-bang-herc-is 
> 
> I've been wrestling with this fic for a bloody long time, so hopefully it's all been worth it!

The ship appeared some time in the night; Raleigh eyes it now, in the grey light of morning. He can hear people shouting and whistling out on the deck, and sees a structure being built, going up fast. He knows what it is - at least, he knows the name of it because nobody seems to know exactly _what_ it is. The posters have been going up all over Anchorage for the past week to announce the imminent arrival of the Pan Pacific Drifting Circus, but other than that? The whole thing's a mystery.

The only thing Raleigh knows for sure about the ship - _The Ark_ \- is that it's going to be his way out.

+

The Dome's almost up when the rain starts, heavy and bringing with it a cold wind that whips its way in through the tent's opening. Herc stands in the centre of the ring, listening to it bounce off the metallic panels that make up the Dome and watching Chuck bolt one of the last few support poles onto the deck.

"How are we looking?" Stacker asks, shaking the rain from his umbrella as he crosses the ring.

"Just the lights to rig up, then we're set. Choi reckons we'll have a full house tonight, we've already got people loitering on the dock."

Stacker nods, satisfied. "And you? How are you-"

"I'm fine," Herc says, quickly. "I'll be fine. Excuse me." Herc hurries away before Stacker can say anything else, pulling the collar of his jacket up before he steps out of the Dome and onto the deck. Blinking through the heavy rain, he peers out at the harbour. He can't see much, but Choi's definitely right about the gathering crowds.

"You shine like a beacon."

Herc smiles, looking round and down at Mako, whose bright blue hair is plastered to her face. She reaches to cup his jaw, glancing up at the shrieking of birds overhead.

"But we're safe for a while, here. Are you looking forward to the show tonight?"

"I'm looking forward to cooling down." Herc covers her small hand with his own, turning his head to kiss the inside of her palm. "You looking for a drift, kiddo?"

Her eyes widen, and she shakes her head quickly. "Reassurance, only."

He looks around, then back to her. "Twins busy?"

"Selling tickets. So this is Anchorage," she says, her gaze flicking towards the harbour for a moment. "Things will change here, won't they?"

Herc's about to answer when someone wraps arms around him from behind, presses a warm kiss into the hair at the back of his head. "You know, even you can catch a cold, Herc. Miss Mori."

"Mister Hansen."

"Scott," Scott says, resting his chin on Herc's shoulder.

"Of course." Mako laughs, bowing her head slightly before excusing herself to make a rapid retreat to somewhere dryer.

"I'm alright," Herc insists, turning around in Scott's arms. "Just a little rain, it's not going to kill me. Where've you been?"

"Five-deck. Gym." Scott's still nuzzling at him, pressed close, the two of them steadily getting wetter and wetter.

"But you're fine as you are."

"I've been lazy all week, Herc. We going to get out of this rain any time soon?"

"I don't know. Like the way it makes you look..." Herc grins, giving in and following Scott's pull to go inside, down and down further still to their cabin. He's shivering by the time Scott closes the door, starts stripping off while he heads to the shower.

"Jesus, good job we've a show tonight." Scott's following closely, fingers drifting across Herc's bared back.

"It's not that bad," Herc mutters, though when he catches sight of himself in the mirror he realizes that maybe it is. No wonder Mako hadn't taken him up on the offer of a drift.

"Wait," Scott says, coming closer to touch him some more, run fingers through shafts of light. "We've got hours til showtime still. Want to fuck about?"

"When you put it that way, how can I refuse?"

+

Raleigh moves slowly along the deck, going with the general flow of the crowd. Past a few open tents pitched up around the huge, metallic dome-shaped Big Top that dominates most of the mid-ship area. It's an impressive vessel, an ex-aircraft carrier repurposed to suit this... oddity. It's like nothing he's ever seen in Anchorage before, and he's pretty sure it's something most people won't see again, not for a long time.

It's the perfect place to lay low. A couple of days and this whole thing will be packed up and back out in open waters, and he can leave Anchorage and Knifehead far behind.

He passes a stage where three men stand, identical in looks and clothing, moving in perfect synchronization with each other. The sign behind them says simply 'Typhoon' in bright red neon. He watches for a while before moving on, pulling his scarf tighter against the icy winds coming up off the Pacific.

There's one tent among the rest that's closed and dark. Raleigh wanders closer to read the sign hanging over the entrance to it, curious about what should be there.

WORLD'S ONLY UNIVERSALLY COMPATIBLE DRIFTER. DISCOVER YOUR PAST TO FIND OUT YOUR FATE. OPEN AFTER THE SHOW.

"They reckon he's never wrong, you know," a voice says, close behind him. He turns around and is met by blue eyes and an amused smile that makes his mouth dry out, just a little bit.

Somehow, he manages words. "How many people honestly want to know what the future has in store for them, though?"

The stranger shrugs, still smiling. "Probably more than you'd think. But it's more like, they think they want to know... right up until they do. Why, are you thinking of paying him a visit later?"

Raleigh looks back at the closed tent, shaking his head. "Yeah, I don't think so. I'm pretty sure I'm one of the few who knows that fate's going to do what it wants, whether you know what's coming or not. I can't do a damn thing to change the future."

"Smart kid. Huh, I've got to run. Show starts in thirty minutes; you should get inside and grab a good seat."

"Save me one," Raleigh says, bolder than he feels. Flirting with complete strangers isn't his usual style, but apparently he can make exceptions.

"Would if I could, believe me!" The guy's already running, and Raleigh, disappointed, just watches him disappear into the crowds already heading for the Big Top's entrance. He hangs back anyway, not exactly wanting a seat close to the front. He doesn't need attention drawing to himself, not if he's going to successfully stay on board.

+

"Good evening and welcome all to the one and _only_ Pan-Pacific Drifting Circus. Prepare to be amazed, thrilled and delighted by the wonders we have for you here tonight!"

Raleigh leans forward in his seat, watching and listening as the Ring Master promises the audience magic and fire and incredible, daredevil feats. He's enthralled, just like everyone else beneath the great, dome-shaped roof.

The lights die out completely then; there are a few gasps from the audience, but any other noise is soon drowned out by sudden, loud music.

Raleigh's never seen anything like it before. There's a flash, then red smoke and the three men he'd seen earlier ascend lengths of gold silk - so fast that Raleigh has no idea how they do it - until they're close to the very top of the dome. He can't take his eyes off the way they move, every second of their act perfectly timed, and he gasps with everyone else when the music reaches a crescendo and the three of them let go of the silk at the same time and plummet. He doesn't know what happens, can't pinpoint the second it does either, but he sees the birds rising from the spaces where the trio were, even as he's braced to watch them hitting the ground.

The birds circle the great dome for a minute, while the music softens out, and then all three settle on the blade of a sword, held out straight by a woman with bright red feathers in her blue hair. She spins slowly, and one sword becomes five, juggled between the birds as they flutter and swoop around her. Raleigh watches, heart in his throat, as she throws all five swords at once, one caught in her left hand, the other in her right, and the other three held by the men who had begun the show. _How?_

He finds himself wondering the same thing more and more as the evening goes on, until there's a shift in the music to something heavier, more brutal, and he edges forward in his seat when the last act of the night comes out. He's stunning, his chest and arms lit up. Blue and gold on thick, sinuous muscle. He looks like a walking flame, bright and hot, but still Raleigh jumps when he hurls a ball of fire from fingertips, up into the great domed roof. It shatters, gold sparks falling as the music slows, softens. The next fireball stops just short of the seats directly in front of the ring, and Raleigh daren't blink as he watches it hover there, watches as it's walked into, disturbed into a halo around his form, rearranged into another shape.

A dragon, he sees, and he wants to know how it works, how the fire doesn't harm this God of a man, where it even comes from. All he can do is watch, spectacle after spectacle, just as the Ringmaster had promised.

Finally it seems as though the show is drawing to a close; the acts all come back out into the ring, one by one, from the girl who'd juggled with and swallowed swords to the two clowns to... him. Raleigh swallows, knowing that he needs to move soon but finding himself unable to turn away from the sight of him. Hercules. He looks like something out of a fairytale, and Raleigh knows it's just clever makeup and lighting but still. He's beautiful.

They're taking their bows to thunderous applause when Raleigh finally remembers why he's here, and starts to slip through the crowds towards the back of the Top. There aren't many people outside in the rain, so he manages to go unnoticed, across the deck and finally through a hatch and into the ship. Quiet and careful, he makes his way further down, looking for a good place to hide. Past empty cabins and through dark rooms, steps and pipes and he doesn't know what any of it is, or how deep into the belly of the ship he's gone. Only that he hears the sounds of the engines, and it's probably deep enough. He crawls into a space that's just big enough to accommodate him, and balls his jacket tight beneath his head.

 _Safe,_ he tells himself. He can worry about the rest of it when the ship's back out at sea.

Now? He's tired, and it's easy to drift off into sleeping, into fiery dreams.

+

"You know you can't be down here." The voice startles Raleigh awake, it's so close. He hits his head trying to escape it, ends up cursing and blinking into the darkness.

"Hey, hey. Calm down, kid. Not gonna hurt you. But you can't stay there."

"I was just..." Raleigh bites his lip, no feasible excuse coming to mind. Shadows move to his left, and he jumps again when someone takes his arm. Gentle, but his heart's still hammering.

"Usually people just come and ask for a job when they want to run away with the circus. Don't get many stowaways, Jabbers see to that. What are you running from, kid?"

"Nothing!" Raleigh protests, a little too fiercely. "Let me go, I'll... I'm sorry, I'll leave."

"No. You can go and see Stacker. I'm not going to hurt you, and neither will he, so long as you're honest. Think you can do that?"

Raleigh considers fighting, getting free and running, but the grip on his arm tightens up and his head's swimming so he surrenders to it, following. "I can't stay in Anchorage," he says, and finally he can make out the man who has a hold of him. The same one he met on the deck earlier, he realises. He'd thought the voice was familiar, been too scared to put two and two together. _Great._

"Why not?"

"My brother died here. Okay?"

The grip loosens, and Raleigh shakes his arm free, scowling.

"What happened?"

"We were on a routine fishing trip... Pirates." Raleigh bites his lip, shrugging. "It doesn't matter what happened. He's gone. There's nothing for me here, I just- I wanted to get away. What are you going to do to me?"

"Woah, mate. You've got me all wrong, alright? I'm not going to do anything except for try to help you. I can't let you stay down here, it's not safe. So I'll take you to Stacker. Maybe we've got something for you, yeah?"

Raleigh's silent for a while, before he finally nods.

"So anyway, I'm Scott. Your head okay? Didn't mean to scare you."

"It's fine," Raleigh lies.

"Alright. How'd you like the show, kid?"

"It's Raleigh. And I'm twenty-seven, not a kid."

Scott smiles, turning to keep going back up. "Fine, how'd you like the show, _Raleigh_?"

"It was great," Raleigh says, wondering if there's even a chance he could make a break for it. "I mean, better than great."

"What was your favourite part?" Scott pushes open a heavy door, holding it for Raleigh to pass through.

"Oh, um... I guess it was the guy with the fire... things. Never seen that before."

Scott grins at that, in a way that makes Raleigh think he knew damn well what the answer to his question was going to be. "Not many people have. Hmm, I'm sure you'll meet him later. This way." Scott turns down a passage, and Raleigh tries to make himself smaller because there are people milling about, most of them still in their costumes from the show, and they all stop to look at him as he passes by. Scott notices, reaches back to put an arm around his shoulders. "No need to be shy. If Stacker lets you stay on board, you'll know everyone soon enough."

"What if he doesn't?"

"He's a reasonable man, Raleigh."

+

Stacker's office is sparse, three identical blue ringmaster's jackets hanging on a rail on one side while the other wall is decorated with three old posters, side by side. He sits behind a wide desk, a crystal decanter filled with something green and smoky in front of him, and an empty glass beside that.

"Who's this, Scott?" He asks, looking Raleigh up and down.

"Attempted stowaway, sir. He's got good reason, though. Raleigh, why don't you tell Stacker about the pirates who attacked your ship?"

Stacker leans forward at that, fixing Raleigh with an intense stare. "Pirates? What was their flag like?"

Raleigh looks at Scott, who gives him a reassuring nod, then meets Stacker's gaze. "Blue. It was just... It was blue. That's all I remember. It was dark, maybe I'm wrong." He's still never been able to say with any certainty that the pirates were human, but that's something he's better off keeping to himself.

"No, you're not." Stacker looks grim, pushes his chair back and stands, coming around the desk to lean back against it instead. "You're lucky you made it out. We've had our fair share of run-ins with these pirates, and they are a mean bunch of bastards who are only getting worse. You came to the right place. We might not be able to promise you absolute safety, but we are definitely well-equipped for the threat."

"If you think you're going to shake them off forever, this boat really isn't the best place," Scott adds, gently.

"It's not- Anchorage is where my brother was last alive. I can't stay there any more, it's too much. Please, I just need to get away."

"Scott?"

"Train him up a bit, he could be an okay Gateman. Jabbers keep fucking off when we hit the ports, we can get him shaped up in the Kwoon."

Raleigh listens, feeling like they're suddenly speaking a completely foreign language, but for the most part it sounds good. It sounds like a way out of Anchorage.

"Herc first, then find him somewhere to sleep and get him something decent to eat. Welcome aboard, Raleigh."

Raleigh glances at Scott, starting to go for Stacker's hand to shake, mumbling thanks, but Scott pulls him away and Stacker doesn't move a muscle.

"You get used to him," Scott says, once they're out of the office. "Better get you over to Herc's then. Follow me."

Raleigh trails after Scott, feeling lost. He's still not sure exactly what happened with Stacker, or what's going to be expected of him in the days and weeks to come. Or why he has to go and see someone else first, or how he's supposed to earn tonight's meal. But he's here, he's not been thrown off the ship, and he's pretty sure he'll do whatever they ask of him to make sure it stays that way.

He's surprised when they wind up back on the deck, passing by the smaller tents that surround the Big Top - the Dome, Scott tells him - and there are plenty of people still on board and milling about, taking everything in.

"Here we go."

"The fortune-teller?" Raleigh says, with a raised brow.

"Drifter, there's a difference. You'll be alright, you're in excellent hands. Herc's my brother, Raleigh."

They stand outside until someone exits the tent, then Scott shoves Raleigh inside. Expecting him to follow, Raleigh's surprised when the flap's closed up behind him, and he finds himself enveloped in darkness again.

"Stacker sent you?"

The voice is right at his ear, makes his heart stutter and stammer in his chest and he nods.

"The new boy," the voice says, then there's a hand on the back of Raleigh's neck, hot and rough. "Relax, I'm not going to hurt you."

"What _are_ you going to do?"

His laugh sounds like Scott's, and Raleigh tenses when he moves, when there's a rustle and something drops, and light spills into the tent suddenly, and _oh._ "You're the fire... guy." _Herc. Of course._

"Yeah, I'm the fire guy. We can do this here, or you can come and sit with..." Herc trails off, smiling at him, and Raleigh realizes that he's blushing. Staring, too.

"Tell you what. Why don't you sit down and we'll get all of your questions out of the way first?"

Raleigh nods, feeling utterly stupid, unable to stop looking and feeling rude for doing so. He sits in the armchair Herc indicates, trying to shrink into it when it becomes clear that Herc's going to remain standing.

"I thought that was just clever lighting," Raleigh says. Clears his throat, trying hard to drag his eyes away from Herc's body to his face.

"Thankfully, most people do. Even in here that's what they make themselves believe."

"What is... How does it... I mean, does it hurt?"

"Sometimes, sure. Closing night usually, that's when I'm busiest. Everyone's a bit dubious at first. You'll understand, the longer you stick around." Herc considers Raleigh for a minute, smiling. "You do _want_ to stick around, don't you?"

Raleigh nods, blushing deeper now that he's under such close scrutiny.

Herc's silent, as if waiting for Raleigh to say something more. When nothing's forthcoming, he rubs his hands down his thighs and moves. "Let's get this done, then. You happy for me to have a look around in there?"

 _In where?_ He doesn't ask, afraid of looking stupid, just makes a quiet sound of assent. He's trying to calm himself down, though it becomes impossible when Herc leans over him, cups the back of his head and tightens his hand into Raleigh's hair.

It's a strange sensation, like the ground and everything above them is falling away but he's safe, safely anchored in Herc's hand. He hears laughter and realizes it's his mother, watching him play with his brother and sister. He smells the cookie pie his grandma used to make, almost tastes the sweetness of it. There's a moment of nothing but flesh and sweat, rushing past like wind off the ocean, then a soft calm. Yancy, fast asleep while Raleigh makes coffee. His dad herding everyone ahead of him onto a plane; Raleigh's first ever time flying. A blue flag, coming out of the dark and the rain, the panicked yelling and the knife. He sees the show he just watched, only it's different. He's watching the audience. People he doesn't yet recognize but somehow _knows_ are cheering for him, and there's a girl there who makes him feel safe. That flag again, and this ship's deck crawling with pirates. A moment of complete abandon, bright as the sun, and a kiss that starts at one mouth and finishes at another, and he knows them, he can almost see their faces-

The tether breaks, and the inside of the tent comes rushing back at him, dizzying for a few moments before it settles. Herc stands back quickly, muttering apologies, and Raleigh blinks at him, blinks at the blaze of light coming off him. He shakes his head to clear the threads of images he feels were all too real, and jerks back in the armchair when he feels how thoroughly hard he is. "Oh, God. I'm sorry, I-"

"Don't... worry about it. It happens."

Raleigh moans, not feeling any better, and pulls his knees up, trying to get himself under control.

"What do you remember?" Herc asks.

"You saw it all," Raleigh says, looking up at Herc, the back of his neck burning. He shrugs, hugging himself. "I don't know who- There were pirates, on this ship. But how could I have seen that? I wasn't there."

"Not yet," Herc corrects, sinking to a crouch in front of Raleigh. "You will be."

"What was that?" Raleigh asks, still feeling the warm tendrils of blue that had bound him to Herc for the few minutes that they were connected.

"The drift. It's what I do. Stacker wants to know if you're going to give us any trouble."

"And am I? If I bring those pirates to this ship, that's-"

"No," Herc says, shaking his head. "That's not on you. Don't even think it."

Raleigh's too distracted to wonder how Herc can be so sure, so he doesn't question it any further. "That, um." Raleigh's face flushes all over again, and he shifts under Herc's gaze. "The other thing..."

Herc grins, the light coming off him in waves finally starting to dull down. "Yeah?"

"That wasn't me. I mean, I've never- Nothing like that."

"Really? Because this, the drift, _me?_ Never usually wrong. It's going to happen, Raleigh, I suggest you just give in to it."

"All I wanted was to get away from Anchorage. This is..."

"A lot. I know. But we take care of our own here, and it looks like that includes you now. Come on. You, um, you down now, mate?"

Herc's lip quirks, making Raleigh blush deeper. He nods, putting his feet back on the floor. "I'm so sorry about that."

"Shut up, it's fine. It's intense sometimes, that's all. Some people are more susceptible to it than others. So when was the last time you ate a decent meal?"

Raleigh stands up, still trying to remember exactly when he'd told Herc his name, and shrugs.

"Right. Time to eat then, I reckon."

 

 

* * *

 

 

Art by libertinem(tumblr): 


	2. Second Drift

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Raleigh learns a little more about the Ark and its crew.

There's almost too much to take in as Herc points out various people as they pass tables, but Raleigh tries his best to commit names and faces to memory. He follows Herc to a table in the far corner, where a young man sits, scowling at them both and feeding scraps to a bulldog.

"We picking up strays now?" 

Herc glares, sliding onto the bench beside Raleigh. "Stacker's okayed him, so don't start. Raleigh, this is Chuck."

"So what are you, Raleigh? Or are you just here for the free food?"

Raleigh blinks, looking at Herc, then at Chuck. "I'm... I'm a fisherman. _Was._ I'll earn my keep, if that's what you're worried about."

"Yeah, I know you will. But what can a fisherman do on this boat? We've got plenty to eat already. Or is it-"

"Chuck, that's enough," Herc says, a little sharply. "He'll be on the gate to start, anyway. Stacker's fine with it, so give it a rest."

"Yeah, but what _is_ -"

"I _said,_ enough."

"Sure. Enjoy the free food, Raleigh. Later, _dad._ "

The kid struts off, dog in tow, and Raleigh picks at the stew on his plate.

"Hey, don't let him get to you. He didn't mean anything by that, he's just..." Herc shrugs, gives Raleigh a thin smile.

"It's okay. Your son?"

"Yeah, we've been on this boat a while. Got on at Sydney some years back, so he's kind of grown up here."

"Makes sense that he's wary of the new guy then. Is it just the two of you?"

Herc swallows, lowering his fork. "And my brother. My wife - Chuck's mother - died in Sydney."

"I'm sorry-"

"It's alright. I think the boy's got about ten different mothers on this ship anyhow. He's alright, just needs a kick in the arse from time to time. He'll warm up. You already met Scott, right?"

Raleigh nods, ducking down when someone ruffles his hair, slips onto the bench the other side of him.

"Sorry, not a kid. I know," Scott says, leaning forward to shoot Herc a grin. "How'd the drift go?"

Raleigh squirms at the mention of it, and concentrates more fully on the food he's lost his appetite for.

"Definitely not boring," Herc replies, tactfully. 

"Oh?" Scott looks at Raleigh, who's turned a little pinker, then back to Herc, grinning as he stabs at his potatoes. "Pervert. So, Raleigh. You'll be in the Kwoon tomorrow morning, eight sharp. Look like you've got some muscle on you at least, so we'll see how well you do."

"What's the Kwoon?"

"It's where we train," Herc says. "Used to be it was just the Jabbers used it, but now we've all got to be able to defend ourselves."

"Jabbers?" Raleigh asks, helplessly.

"Like a bouncer. You'll be on the lookout for troublemakers, hopefully stop anything before it starts. But if not... well, you get your jabs in where you can."

"What if I'm not cut out for that?" Raleigh asks. "Will Stacker let me stay on board?"

Scott exchanges a look with Herc that Raleigh can't even begin to interpret, and nods. "Of course. This is a family, kid. Once you're in, you're in."

+

" _Scott..._ " Herc pulls at his brother's shoulder, making blue eyes lift to meet his. "Enough, I can't..."

Scott smiles, dipping his head just to kiss the stripe of pale blue that's still pulsing warmly under Herc's skin, then finally comes up to kiss his mouth, fingers curling behind Herc's ear, into his hair. He stops, suddenly, and sits back. 

"You're holding something back," he says. "It's just the two of us, you can tell me."

"It's nothing. Scott, it's nothing, just that last drift... the poor boy was embarrassed enough, I don't need you teasing him about it too. So forget it, okay?" Herc lets his hands wander, stroking the smooth skin of Scott's back, down to cup his arse.

"C'mon, Herc. Please? What did you see?"

Herc sighs, digging his fingers into the crease of Scott's arse just to watch the colour flood his throat, to feel him squirm and listen to the moan that's bitten back. "Him. With us. It was... I don't know, it was pretty intense. Couldn't see how we got there, though." It's not even the most important thing that came up in the Drift, but Herc isn't sure what to say about that, not yet.

"Mm, shit, that kid's clearly not gotten laid in a long time."

"Yeah, well. He didn't get the clearer picture, so I think..."

"What, you should leave it alone? Herc." Scott bends, pressing back against Herc's fingers and kissing his jaw. "If it was in the drift, you know there's no avoiding it. And I'm just guessing at what might be hiding under that baggy-arsed sweater, but I don't think you're going to want to. He was with both of us?"

Herc nudges at Scott, brow raised at him. "Yes. Together."

"Huh."

"Scott, I'm not a fucking idiot." Herc rolls then, pins his little brother to the bed, chews a kiss into his mouth that's possessive and fierce and almost vicious. "I love you, moron," he growls, biting a bruise into Scott's throat. "So if he's okay with that, and believe me, from what I saw in the drift he is _more_ than okay with it, what's the harm?"

"His brother was killed by the Kaiju. Sooner or later, he's going to figure out that we're more than just a circus, and... I don't know, Herc. Seems like a shit-storm waiting to happen."

Herc grins, lifting his brother's thighs. "Yeah, maybe, but if it was in the drift there's no avoiding it, right?"

"Smart-arse," Scott mutters, his brow furrowing a little as Herc pushes into him, slow. 

"We'll wait," Herc says, his voice softer now. "See what happens." He settles, enjoying the deep warmth around his cock for a moment before he moves again, one arm snaking beneath Scott to pull him up, closer. 

"Fuck. Drift with me," Scott sighs, blissful. "Burn for me."

+

The room Raleigh's been given still has someone else's stuff in it. He didn't like to ask what happened to them, and it felt kind of weird at first, seeing a complete stranger's pictures on the wall, but now he's taken the time to clear everything away into an empty locker, he feels better. Tomorrow he'll see about getting rid of the stuff completely. The bed's comfy enough, though narrow, and other than the creaking of the ship and the occasional burst of laughter from somewhere outside his door, it's pretty peaceful.

The only thing missing is Yancy, though Raleigh can almost hear his voice saying _just go to sleep, kid._ He closes his eyes, tries to think of anything else. Scott. Herc. 

He wonders what Herc thinks of him after that drift. Raleigh tries to remember exactly what he'd seen inside that tent, but it seems like a dream now. The strangest details linger in ways that don't connect; the smell of pie in the middle of a forest, bloody water in a metal pail, a warm hand on his chest. He wonders if he's allowed to go back. If it'll work, a second time. If he'll see and remember more, the more he lets Herc drift with him.

_Go. To sleep._

"Am I doing the right thing here, Yance?"

There's no reply, and that's the hardest thing of all these days. Yancy would always help him to keep his head on straight, and now he feels like he doesn't know what the hell he's doing and there's nobody around to tell him it'll be alright. The ship seems safe enough, just like Stacker had said, but it doesn't make Raleigh feel much better about the prospect of coming face to face with those pirates again. Getting to know the rest of the crew will help, he's sure about that. He just hopes they're more pleasant than Chuck had been.

+

"I didn't realize I'd have an audience," Raleigh says, seeing the people lining the edges of the Kwoon. "This some kind of initiation?"

"Just relax. Stacker's not the only one who wants convincing that you're one of us, that's all. You'll be fine."

"Thanks for the vote of confidence." Raleigh leaves Scott's side to step to the other edge of the mat, turns to face him. He sees someone else come forward, and it's the blue-haired girl from last night's show, the sword-swallower. He thinks she's the one he saw in the drift, but it was all so fast and new that he can't be sure.

"Mako's here to make sure we keep it legal," Scott says, giving Raleigh a wink.

"What isn't legal?"

"Um, well. Killing your opponent, for one. We try not to do that, doesn't do morale any good."

Raleigh takes an unconscious step back, not even certain that Scott's joking. "I thought we were just sparring?"

"She's an analyst, and an excellent one at that. If there's anything to improve on, she'll let you know. Happy to begin?"

Raleigh nods, and two seconds later, he's on his back on the mat, blinking up at Scott and completely unable to figure out how he wound up where he is. Scott grins, offers him a hand up, and after a moment's hesitation, Raleigh takes it. He can hear a few people murmuring, chuckling under their breath, and he squares his shoulders.

He manages at least to get a couple of hits in before Scott floors him again with a sweep Raleigh just doesn't see coming.

He's getting up when he notices Chuck standing near the door, watching him with a smirk. It pisses him off, which helps matters even less, because Scott's calm and cool and takes him down a third time and Raleigh almost asks _what the hell **are** you?_

A different hand reaches for him this time, and Raleigh wants the ground to swallow him whole because of _course_ it's Herc.

"Scott, stop showing off." Herc pulls Raleigh up effortlessly, and Scott smiles at them both, apologetic. "Sorry about that," Herc says. "Not really a fair fight."

"That makes me feel better," Raleigh mutters.

"Yeah, well he should _know_ better. Show's over, folks," Herc tells the onlookers.

Raleigh thinks he hears Chuck's voice, something about not belonging in this freak show, but when he looks across the room, everyone's gone. Only Mako remains, besides himself and the brothers.

"Shall we try this again?" Herc says to Scott, before stepping back. 

"How 'bout you take a turn?" Scott shoots back, a lazy smile on his lips. He hasn't even broken a sweat.

Raleigh doesn't fare much better with Herc. He can actually see the moves coming this time, and somehow that makes it worse. Herc and Scott are both walking distractions, but Raleigh has time to appreciate the way the muscles in Herc's shoulders move, or the grace in the way he twists and sidesteps - all the same things that had him utterly transfixed during last night's show. Herc doesn't put him down to the mat, at least. Mako calls the hits, and Scott cheers Raleigh on and Herc's giving similar encouragement when Raleigh actually remembers to listen.

Still, he doesn't seem to be getting many hits in, and after a while Herc catches Raleigh's wrists and gently lowers them. 

"That's enough for now," he says.

"I haven't really fought since Yancy... Even that was just... I mean, it was nothing like this."

"You're fine. Listen, Scott's a damn cheat and you're still finding your feet here. You did better than anyone else in your shoes might've done, so stop worrying."

"But-"

Scott shakes his head. "Raleigh, it's okay. Um, Herc, we need to go and do that thing. You coming?"

Raleigh sees the look that passes between them, and it's a fight not to look disappointed when they both leave. He smiles weakly when Mako approaches, does his best to return her polite bow.

"Your act was pretty cool last night," he says, and she looks up at him, pleased but humble about it.

"Thank you. You still have work to do, though. I think you would be better matched with someone else."

"Yeah, I got that feeling. What did he mean, Scott was cheating? I didn't see it."

"That is how." Mako smiles, looking at Raleigh a moment longer. "If you would like to train further, I could help?"

+

Raleigh spends half the morning in the Kwoon with Mako in the end. She's good to talk with, and she seems a little less cryptic than everyone else on the boat, although that's not saying a lot. When they're done, she leaves him with a man named Choi, who shows him around the ship some more, and tells him all that he'll need to know when he's on the gate for the evening's show.

"You can watch the show, once everyone's inside. If you want."

"I watched last night," he says, and Choi just smiles.

"It ain't the _same_ every night, bro. Let's see, last night you had Typhoon, Herc, Hermann and Newt and... Mako, right?"

"Yeah," Raleigh says, following Choi inside the Dome.

"Then you've got the Illusionist tonight. Mako's on again, there'll be the twins and the Russians, too."

"Not Herc?" Raleigh asks, trying to mask his disappointment.

Tendo gives him an odd look when he asks that, and Raleigh just shrugs and says that he really enjoyed Herc's act.

"Everyone does, but it... uh, it takes a lot out of him. He'll be back out tomorrow, closing night here. We haul anchor Sunday morning."

"Right, of course. So I can really watch tonight's show?"

"Sure can. You won't get the same view as the payin' public, but it's still good."

+

Raleigh's still on a high, buzzed and bouncing on the balls of his feet as Mako watches him, amused.

"He's good, isn't he?" She says, placing her swords carefully into a velvet-lined case. "The two of them, they are a gift to this circus."

" _How_ , though? I mean, how did he do that thing with... How?"

"Sometimes it is better not to know. The mystery makes the illusion, I think." She smiles when the Gage twins pass by, one of them - Raleigh can't tell them apart at all - setting a flower into her hair. She catches his arm and pulls him towards her, and Raleigh looks away, only turning back when he hears his name mentioned.

"Scott'll be here in a minute. You should wait for him," the whichever twin says, and Mako laughs, swatting him.

"Oh, I-I don't..."

"He _loves_ having his ego stroked."

Mako coughs, dragging the twin away to leave Raleigh wondering what joke he just missed and thinking - not for the first time - that there are things going on aboard this ship that he doesn't have the first clue about. He's on the verge of chickening out and running when Scott appears to his left.

"Enjoy the show?"

Raleigh manages a nod, trying not to think about anything else that Scott might enjoy having stroked. He knows he's failing miserably, because Scott's grinning at him and Raleigh's pretty sure his entire face is burning. "So, illusions?" He asks. "Is that what Herc meant when he said you cheated this morning?"

"Uh, sort of."

"He has his fire, there's got to be something about you, too. What is it?"

Scott tilts his head, appearing to consider something. "You're taking all of this quite well for someone who... I mean, I'm still not even sure what you are. Even Herc can't see it yet."

"I'm just me. What else is there I'm supposed to be?"

Scott's expression is unreadable for a moment, before he smiles. "Nothing, Raleigh. You're perfect as you are. Tell you what, why don't you drop by and have dinner with us again later? Not in the mess, though."

Raleigh swallows, nodding because he doesn't trust his voice. "Where should I come? Uh..."

Scott grins, which only makes Raleigh _more_ jittery, and leans closer in a way that has his heart stuttering.

"We're seventeen doors away from you, number three. You'll find us. Maybe Herc'll show you the way, if you're off to see him again?"

"I wasn't-"

"You should."

+

Herc's exhausted by the time the last of his visitors leaves. There were more people queuing outside, but thankfully they've been dispersed, told to come back tomorrow. He's surprised to see Raleigh standing nearby, apparently waiting for him.

"You didn't want to come in?" he asks, securing his tent.

"You were busy. It's okay. Scott-"

"Say no more. So what did my little brother send you here for, Raleigh? A drift?"

"He invited me to dinner." Raleigh looks down at his feet, then straight at Herc. "But if you're too tired I'll find the mess again."

"Oh, no. No, if Scotty's cooking, you're coming with me."

+

"That was amazing," Raleigh sighs, setting down his knife and fork.

"He's pretty good," Herc agrees, grinning at the look Scott gives him. "All self-taught, too. You're welcome any time, Raleigh."

"Why does everyone keep asking what I am?" Raleigh asks, sitting up straighter. 

"Think I ought to get more beer," Scott says, but Herc shakes his head.

"No, I think we need to have another drift. Raleigh?"

"Sure. After you answer the question."

Herc rubs at his face, rolls up his shirt sleeves so that Raleigh can see the bright lines of fiery blue carved through his skin.

"This is what I am. A drifter. Scott's a warper. Mako, your analyst this morning? She's a Sword - a Samurai, if you want. Point is, Raleigh, this whole ship is full of freaks like us. Do you know what those pirates were, the ones who attacked the ship you and your brother were on?"

Raleigh blinks, apparently unable to answer.

"Kaiju scum," Scott mutters. "They've got the biggest fuckin' bone to pick with us, and... they're not gonna stop. I won't lie to you, kid, they're doing their best to wipe us all out, a few at a time. They've been escalating lately, though. I don't know what you are, Raleigh, but you're _something._ And so was your brother."

"I can't be," Raleigh says, his voice quietly rough. "I'd know. I'd _know._ "

"Hey... it's nothing to be afraid of, or ashamed of."

"How can you be sure? You don't even know what's wrong with me."

"Woah, buddy," Scott says. "There's nothing _wrong_ with you. There's nothing wrong with any of us, either. We're not better or worse than anybody else, we're just different. So don't think of it like it's a fucking disease. That's how this whole fucking thing started." 

Herc watches his brother get up, walk away. To get more beer, he supposes. He looks back at Raleigh, who looks distraught, and... This really wasn't how he'd pictured the evening going. Maybe Scott said too much too soon, but Raleigh's going to find out everything in the end. It's inevitable.

"Why wouldn't they tell me? Mom and Dad, they must've known."

"Sometimes these things skip generations. Maybe they didn't know anything about it. And maybe we're wrong, okay? Maybe I'm wrong. It happens."

"That isn't what I was told. Can we do that drift now? Can't you look, find it out, whatever it is?"

"I can try, but it's not exactly easy to direct the flow of the drift. I don't... I don't get a say in what I see. You need to relax first, though."

"This'll help," Scott says, coming back in and pressing a beer into Raleigh's hand. 

"I'm sorry." Raleigh watches Scott as he sits back down, and shrugs. "I never knew about any of this stuff, and I feel like everyone here expected me to. I don't want to let you down. Either of you, not when you both vouched for me."

"It's okay. You're not the first late bloomer we've had, and you probably won't be the last," Scott assures him. "Get this drift done, then we'll have dessert."

Herc smiles gently, lifts an eyebrow at Raleigh who nods, putting the bottle down when Herc gets up, comes around behind him. Herc closes his hand gently around the base of Raleigh's skull, the top of his neck. Lets the fire snake out and under Raleigh's skin, pulses of blue finding their way into his subconscious.

He's been told that to them it feels like falling, slow and weightless into driftspace. For him, it's quicker than that. Harder. He sees things first, rushing by like he's on a train just waiting until it settles on a station to stop at. He reminds himself that Raleigh wanted answers, but he's caught up in it, whipped back again to the night that Yancy died. Herc tastes the salt spray, feels the motion of the ship, rough waters. He hears a roar, and he knows that it's Raleigh. Fighting back, pounding his fists into the killer's face, neck, ribs. Over and over until there's nothing left but a bloody, broken mess.

Herc licks his teeth, lets the two of them be pulled away from there to somewhere else. Raleigh standing on the edge of a roof, looking down, Yancy on the ground looking back and yelling at him to get down, _get down from there_ , if mom sees you she'll _scream_ , Raleigh! Raleigh's laughter, carefree, the defiant way he stands there for another few seconds, winter sun on his face, before he turns back towards the window.

Another yell, but it's gone and Raleigh's in his arms now. No, not _now_ , but it has that kind of immediacy about it. Herc strokes Raleigh's back, watches his eyes come open, and there's a smile that's the most peaceful, beautiful thing Herc's ever seen. He looks beyond Raleigh's shoulder, sees Scott with one knee on the edge of the bed, and his hand reaching between Raleigh's legs. He feels the heat from Raleigh's skin, leans to kiss him-

The drift pulls him out of that moment and into another. He's up high, some other ship he knows but doesn't know. A dark blue flag, burning. Raleigh's hands, coated with thick blood, slick on the mast he's climbing down. Kaiju, everywhere, and all of them dead or dying. Herc's watching from the deck now, watching Raleigh descend, watching him weave past bodies to get to where Herc's standing. Mako, joining him, the edge of her sword dripping. 

Scott's voice, warm in Raleigh's ear and Herc kisses his cheek because he's blushing, and Herc feels it. Flush of anger giving way to something softer, an ache in the ends of fingers just to touch, be touched back.

Raleigh's looking out at some faraway view, a city Herc's never been to. He's young and happy, looking up at his mother as she kisses the top of his head, tells him that dinner is almost ready, and to come away from the window in case he falls. Herc looks when Raleigh does at the sound of Yancy's voice, insisting that Raleigh won't fall, he can't. Herc tries to hold Raleigh here, but the drift keeps flowing and they're somewhere else again.

 _Maman is gone, Raleigh._ There are tears in his father's eyes, and Raleigh clings to his sleeves but he pulls away, leaving Raleigh to crumple, alone, onto his bed. 

Flashes then; white lilies on his mother's grave. The tiny apartment Raleigh once shared with his brother. The smell of a barbecue, the crunch of snow underfoot.

Herc's eyes open, and he eases his hand off Raleigh's neck, pulls the fire back in and glances across the table at Scott, who's watching them both.

Raleigh flexes his fingers on the table, stares at them for a long moment, his cheeks flushed dark and his mouth slightly open. "I have to go," he says, his chair scraping as he pushes it back, and Herc doesn't try to stop him.

"Mate-" Scott says, but Raleigh's already at the door.

"I can't."

"Shit," Herc mutters, watching him go. "On the plus side, I might have some answers for him, when he decides to talk to us again."

"That bad?"

"I think maybe we should've told him about us beforehand?" Herc stands, starts gathering the dirty dishes to wash, sighs when Scott snakes an arm about his waist, kisses his jaw.

"If you saw him with us, he'll figure out whatever issues he has. You know that, right?"

"I do."

"Leave them. Come to bed."

Herc turns around in Scott's arm, presses his forehead to Scott's and leans in. "We need to tell that boy everything, Scott. Sooner, rather than later."

"Was he happy? When you saw him with the two of us?"

"That's not the fuckin' point, is it?" Herc's eyes close, and he tilts his head to let Scott at his throat. "He should know everything."

Scott shrugs, speaking around the press of his lips to Herc's skin. "He already knows a lot more than he did." He pulls back, and Herc murmurs nothing words at the touch to his jaw. "Let's not overload him, eh? When he talks to us again, that is."


	3. Under the Skin

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Mako puts Raleigh right, and after he sees the Hansen brothers sharing the stage he finally begins to follow where the drift's taking him.

Raleigh manages to steer clear of the Hansens the following day, helping out around the Dome wherever he can, mostly with the building of the last show's stage. He has a head for heights, and it's put to good use with the intricate design for whatever the circus has planned for its grand finale.

He tries to ask, but is told that if he wants to know, he's just going to have to watch the show like everybody else.

Mako catches up with him a couple of hours before the show is due to start, and he remembers the way he'd seen her in the drift. Statuesque, in spite of her size. A fearless warrior. He remembers as well what Herc had described her as, and he watches the way she handles her precious swords, and wonders what the hell it all means.

"Is everything alright, Raleigh?" 

"Yeah, sure," he says immediately. He can see she's unconvinced. 

"It doesn't seem that way," she says, and tilts her head. "Herc and Scott. You've been avoiding them all day, it has been noticed. Why?"

"It isn't my place to say," Raleigh replies, glancing around them.

"Did something happen?"

Raleigh shifts his feet, shrugging. "No. They're great. I'm just not sure I belong here. I'm not like you guys, I can't... I can't do magic tricks, or juggle, and-"

"Nobody has asked you to do either of those things. But you're here with us, and that makes you one of us. You like them, don't you?"

"Who?" Raleigh asks, and Mako purses her lips.

"Herc and Scott," she says slowly. "I understand, of course. They are beautiful."

"I guess." Raleigh tries to think of some way to change the subject, but Mako's scrutinizing him and his throat dries up.

"Have you spoken to them, Raleigh? Do you know anything at all about them?"

It's almost accusatory, and Raleigh feels a sharp sweat start at the back of his neck. Where Herc's hand had been.

"You know the Drift, that Herc does, it works both ways." She twirls one of her swords up in the air, catches it gracefully behind her back, and smiles at him. "But talking is better. If you are worried about what people will think, don't."

"I don't care what anyone thinks of me," Raleigh insists, "but they're..."

"A drifter and a warper. You did not even ask what that meant, did you?"

"No, but I'm pretty sure it doesn't mean they're together. Which they are. And," Raleigh rubs his face, groaning, "I wasn't going to say anything, not about that."

"It doesn't matter, I know. Everyone knows."

"And nobody thinks it's a little... wrong?"

"I think that most people who have nothing to do with this ship might think that, so I am happy that I am on board this ship and those people are not. They love each other. There is no stronger bond than that of family."

Raleigh feels a slight wrench in his heart, thinking of Yancy. His mother. Jazmine, Papa. 

"Do you understand?"

"I understand family, just not how that means they sleep together. But, I know what I felt in the Drift. I know _how_ I felt, I mean. I'm just not sure how to get there, or even if I can. Everything I know tells me that it's not right, how can I trust something that Herc showed me?"

"He's a drifter." Mako shrugs. "They never lie, what would be the point? Do you think he wanted every one of his secrets shown to a perfect stranger either? He cannot control what you see, Raleigh, and now you push them both away because you're afraid of what will happen. Even though it will still happen." She taps his temple with the tip of her finger, smiling. "You place so much faith in what you've been taught, when you should trust what you know, instead. What you feel. What you _want._ "

"I don't know. How do I go into something like that?"

"The same way that I did," Mako tells him.

"Huh?" 

She smiles, and it's as mischievous as it is coy. "The twins?"

" _Both_ of them? Honestly?"

Her eyes narrow slightly, and she nods. "Why would I lie?"

"Oh. I don't..."

"You have been on this ship for two days, almost three. Open your eyes, and you'll understand so much more. In the meantime... go and see them. You deserve to be happy too, Raleigh." 

+

Raleigh gapes along with the rest of the audience as Herc appears at one side of the Dome, hurling a fireball high, and half a second later he's at the other side, throwing another to meet the first halfway. He claps along with everyone else when the explosion in the centre sparkles and shimmers into the shape of a dragon's head, burning gold.

There's Scott, sudden, when the sparks all disappear, tipping his top hat as he bows. Herc, striding out onto the stage behind him, his body burning blues and golds in the fine patterns Raleigh remembers from last night, from both of his Drifts. Herc puts his hands on Scott's shoulders, and Raleigh gasps as the tux Scott's wearing catches fire, pale blue licking the black and white from his upper body, and he applauds along with everyone else when the tux seems to melt into the air, beautiful black and white birds taking flight, disappearing into the shadows at the very top of the dome.

His heart thuds when out of those same shadows, the Wei triplets dive, graceful and perfectly in sync with each other, long waves of black and white silk unravelling as they descend. It's so fast, too fast - just like the first night - but they stop just in time and so close to the floor of the ring that Raleigh sees the dust rising. He remembers to breathe again and watches them climbing, lean and sleek.

It's serene, the way they move, slowly winding together until the silk has formed a braided rope and they are positioned at its end like the form of a pendulum - or an anchor, Raleigh thinks - swinging hypnotically back and forth. It's a beautiful dance, and the dome seems to become still all around it.

Someone touches his arm, and he jumps, turning to see Herc there. The burn has died down to a glow, but Raleigh's mouth dries out because he's still bright and warm, and sweating. 

"How did you-?"

"Enjoying the show?"

Raleigh looks back towards the stage, to the brothers still swinging slowly, to Mako spinning gracefully with her swords flashing, catching and reflecting the lights in a riot of colour. 

"I'm sorry about last night. I'm trying to understand." 

"So come again tonight. Don't stop watching."

Raleigh nods, turning to say something else, but Herc's already gone, back on the stage with Scott, Mako and the triplets. _How does he move so fast?_

+

By the time the show finishes, Raleigh feels like he's spent the past two hours in some kind of lucid dream state. He watches the Dome slowly empty, listens to snatches of conversation as the audience members file out past him. Every one of them amazed with what they've seen, and sorry that it's over. Wondering when they'll see anything like it again.

He's on his way to see Scott and Herc when he runs into Chuck in the corridor.

"You're still here?"

"I'm staying," Raleigh says. "I know you don't think I belong here, but you're wrong."

"Oh, really?" Chuck folds his arms across his chest, eying Raleigh up. "What are you then?"

"I don't know yet. _Yet._ "

"When you eventually figure it out, let me know." His eyes narrow for a second, and he glances down the corridor. "Your room's not down there. Where are you going?"

"I invited him to dinner."

Raleigh straightens up a little, squaring his shoulders and hoping he doesn't look too smug about how put out Chuck looks right now.

" _Him?_ "

"Yes, Chuck. And don't worry." Herc puts his hand on Raleigh's back, gently urging him on, past Chuck. "You'll find out soon enough what he is."

"I'm sorry," Raleigh says, once they're out of earshot. "I know he's your son, but-"

"He can be an ass. Forget about it, okay? He's always the same with the newbies." Herc's smiling, and Raleigh can't remember why he ever wanted to be as far away from this man as possible. Something inside feels momentarily weightless as he remembers the images from the Drift that he'd been trying so hard not to think about. 

" _I_ was an ass last night."

"No, you weren't. You reacted how just about any normal person would have. We're here." Herc opens the door, letting Raleigh in ahead of him. There are already delicious smells filling the room, and Scott calls out that he'll be through in a minute.

"I spoke to Mako today about it. You know, I'm still not even sure how it works. You're brothers."

"We know," Herc says, grinning. "He was sixteen when he figured out what he could do. Me, I'd known for a while, I was just waiting for him to catch up. He was seventeen the first time he actually let me drift with him. That... That wasn't where it started. I got married, we had Chuck. Me and Angie, we were..." Herc sits down, patting the empty cushion beside him. Raleigh's careful, trying to keep at least a little space between them for now. "Kaiju came for me and Chuck one day and she just- She was in the wrong place at the wrong time. I got my son out of there, there was nothing I could do to save her. Don't think he's ever really got over that, blames himself as much as me I reckon. Scott got us all onto this ship, into the circus. It's not the safest of havens, but there's strength in numbers."

Scott appears, leaning over the couch between Herc and Raleigh. "Did Herc get to the part where we started having sex, yet?"

Raleigh blushes, deeper when Herc turns his head to kiss Scott's cheek. Scott keeps talking, his voice softening in ways that make Raleigh squirm. "After a show, and he was looking like he does right now. I'd been screwing around for months, hustling anyone and everyone out of whatever I could at the ports we stopped at. He told me enough was enough."

"Scotty..." Herc sighs, but Scott continues.

"You said I could stay or leave. If I stayed, I'd have to settle down. I told you I loved you. You were the only one I wanted to settle with."

"You kissed me once, then we couldn't stop."

Raleigh listens to them, and understands immediately what Mako had been talking about. 

"You should have heard him when I figured out something new that I could do." Scott purrs, touching the back of Raleigh's neck. "I'll show you."

"One step at a time, Scott. Raleigh, we need you to be okay with this. I know I've seen it in the Drift, but if there's any doubt in-"

Raleigh swallows, looking at both of them, and finds that there isn't. "I'm here. I want... I want this. You. Both of you."

"We should eat first," Scott murmurs, his lips brushing the back of Raleigh's ear. 

"He's also a tease," Herc says, taking Raleigh's hand. "Come on. We'll eat, then... figure the rest out."

+

"So it's like... bending reality?" Raleigh asks, taking another plate from Herc and stacking it with the others.

"Warpers used to be known as artists, did I say that already?"

"Yeah," Herc says, laughing. "Once or twice. And you create some of the most perfect art, Scotty, okay?"

"Okay, but I'm talking to Raleigh. So it's like... Time and perception. I can make a half second last for half an hour, but most people just see what happens in that half second. It's how Herc gets from one place to another, how you blink or take a breath and something completely impossible has happened."

"So, yeah. I think I get it. How come Herc's immune to it?"

"Oh, he's not. I just choose who to include in the, uh. Thing. Never exactly came up with a word for it. But during a show, I need crew, I need the other performers to have their time match my time. So we're all in this kind of bubble. If you're watching, you see what we want you to see. That's what I do. It's also good for cheating at poker, and beating your big brother at pretty much anything."

Raleigh laughs as Herc whips Scott with the dishcloth, and leans back against the counter. "And Herc. Your fire thing, that's to do with Drifting?"

"I get a build-up. Every time I drift." Herc shrugs, shooting Scott a look that Raleigh can't interpret. "That's why the last night's always the best, all the people who come through, stop at my tent to get a glimpse of what's to come. They feed into it. Don't ask me why it's fire, I can't tell you. There was a Drifter once, wasn't there Scott? His drifts just got lodged in his brain, he was... I don't know, he just couldn't figure out how to bleed them out. Just went crazy, couldn't tell what was real and what wasn't any more."

"How did _you_ figure it out?"

Scott gets still at the sink, and glances across at them both, his gaze lingering on Herc. 

"Can I tell you some other time?"

Raleigh wonders what he's missing, sees the look in Herc's eyes, and shrugs. "Sure. Sorry, I shouldn't have-"

"Hey, no. It's fine. It's just a hard story, and I'd rather not tell it right now. Why don't we go sit down and see where the rest of the night takes us?"

"Personally I'm hoping for nakedtown," Scott says, opening the fridge. "Beer or spirits?"

"Think we'd better stick with beer for now. Horny fucker." Herc says it affectionately, going ahead and into the small lounge area. One look back at Raleigh and he keeps going, pulling open another door. Raleigh sees the bed over his shoulder, and looks back to see Scott coming up behind him, a six pack hanging from his left hand. 

"Go on in, if it's what you want."

Raleigh thinks again about the Drift images, about how peaceful and good it had felt, and he takes Herc's offered hand and lets himself be pulled over the threshold, down onto the bed, onto Herc's lap. He hears Scott putting the beers down, and closes his eyes when Herc bends, kisses his jaw. It's been so long since he's been with anyone, he feels like an overstimulated teenager whose pants need to come off yesterday and somehow knowing that Scott and Herc are brothers makes it all the more thrilling. Which he'd known. It had been the thing he'd spent the day running away from, the terrible notion that he was as bad - if not worse - than they were.

Except it isn't bad. It isn't bad at _all._ The scratch of Herc's beard at his neck, Scott quietly rubbing his back, lifting his sweater to get at his skin, it's almost more than he can deal with. He feels them both pause at the sight of his scars, knew it was inevitable but still, it makes him hesitate, wait for the question he knows is coming. They don't ask though, not yet. Herc knows, Raleigh guesses. It was all there in the drift, wasn't it?

"You're shaking like a leaf," Herc says, and it's soft and soothing and Raleigh swallows, pulls back to look at him.

"Because I'm terrified?" 

"Of what?" Scott lets his sweater drop, moves to sit beside Herc on the bed and Raleigh shivers, feels Herc's hands tighten on his waist.

"That I don't know what I'm doing. That I'll turn out to be nothing special, and you won't... You know."

"I want you here. We both do."

"How long has it been?" Scott asks, and Raleigh feels himself start to blush all over again.

"It doesn't matter. Raleigh, I won't make you stay, but if you want to? You can just sleep here if that's what you want. If you want to do more than just sleeping, we'll do that. If you want to lie back and watch us, you're welcome to do that, too. And if..."

Scott grins, elbowing his brother. "If you want to join in at any point, you're more than welcome. _More_ than."

"I'd like that. The last one. For now."

"Ah, the live porn." Scott grins. "Excellent choice. Make yourself comfortable, in that case."

Raleigh's pretty sure he's blushing so bad that the heat coming off him could give Herc a run for his money, but he climbs off Herc's lap anyway, and circles around to the top of the bed, sits back against the pillows and kicks his boots off. "I'm comfy," he says, and it sounds a lot cockier than he feels.

He likes the way it makes Scott smile, the soft laugh and shake of his head before he reaches for Herc's shoulder, pulls him into a kiss that's anything but soft. He doesn't realise he's said anything, just hears an 'oh, shit' leave his mouth before they both turn to look at him, Scott only for a second before he turns his attention back to Herc's ear, his neck, the faint traces of blue on his collarbone. 

He wants to join them. He _really_ wants to be somewhere in the middle of that, but he can't move, can't make himself stop watching the way Herc's fingers settle on Scott's back, or how Scott licks at the faded fire like it's something delicate, breakable. Like Herc is some precious thing he can't quite believe he's being trusted with. It's _real_ , and it's sweet and hot and Raleigh squirms when Herc hauls Scott over onto the bed, onto his back, his head resting against Raleigh's outstretched leg. He holds his breath so as not to miss a second of Herc's hands on Scott's skin, the flat of his palm stroking down, fingers curling to scratch, to tickle.

Lets a surprised laugh out when Scott wriggles, swatting Herc's head and pushing up against him until he relents, slides his hand lower, curving it to fit the growing tent in Scott's pants.

He listens to Scott's rumbling moan, watches the way Herc's hand moves, and he shifts against the pillows. Herc looks up, Scott closes his eyes and takes hold of Herc's wrist, and Raleigh's fingertips feel numb at the sight of them both.

"You're welcome here, Raleigh. _Wanted._ " Herc says, a heat to the words that gets Raleigh moving, pulling off his sweater and turning to stretch out alongside Scott. He touches Scott's side, runs his fingers down over muscle that's hard, skin that's hot and already damp with sweat.

"Mm, even better," Scott groans, looking sidelong at Raleigh with a grin. "Hey, gorgeous."

"Hi." Raleigh's still nervous, but it's more about how he can't believe he's doing anything like this than it is about what he's doing. He bends, presses his lips to the corner of Scott's mouth, whimpers when Scott's fingers close in his hair and pull him into a different kind of kiss. Deeper, wetter and hotter. 

He's let go, only for Herc to catch him, strong hand and curved palm, a gentle touch through Raleigh's hair, the scrape of his beard and the insistent pressure of his lips and tongue. Raleigh opens up to him, relaxing into his hand, warmed by the way Scott turns to touch him, how Herc moves over him and kisses him like there's something new to discover in every corner of his mouth. He reaches, shyly, rests the tips of his fingers along Herc's shoulder, tightening them just a little to feel Herc press in harder too.

He's pliant, easily repositioned over Herc's lap, Scott behind them both, kissing patterns into his back that make him shiver. 

"What happened here?" Scott asks quietly, touching Raleigh's scars.

"Knifehead," Raleigh replies, closing his eyes tightly for a second. Herc strokes his hair, pulls him a little closer, and Raleigh thinks he hears _not now, Scotty._

Herc's hard, and the second Raleigh realises that, he settles down more fully, smiles with more confidence than he's feeling because he doesn't know where to go from here. What they want, or what _he_ wants. 

"Bird," Scott says, resting his chin over Raleigh's shoulder. "You were right, Herc."

"What?" Raleigh asks, trying to look back, his head falling forward instead when Scott sucks a kiss into his nape.

"Not afraid to fall. Finding perches wherever you can?" Herc smiles. "You're a bird, Raleigh. Ssh, don't worry about it now. C'mon." 

"Want me to...?" Scott says, his hands on Raleigh's hips now, rubbing slow circles.

Herc gives the slightest nod, and Raleigh starts to turn to ask _what_ , but things slow down and his skin lights up where Herc's touching him, his blunt nails scratching south at a pace that makes Raleigh ache for what's coming to a point that's edged with pain, and there's Scott's teeth scraping across his back, so slow he can feel the drag of his skin where it's caught, feel when it's released and settling back onto his frame. He can feel goosebumps rising, one by one, and a shudder that starts at his toes and takes an eternity to go through the rest of him. His fly, the zipper sending shocking vibrations through him as it's lowered, one tooth at a time. Scott's teeth, still on their path from one side of his back to the other. Herc's nails in coarse hair and he feels the movement through each one, hears the breath start in his lungs, feels its progress up through his chest, the moment where it's given sound and it's long and low and Herc's knuckles brush against his cock and Raleigh feels every fucking ridge and whorl in the skin of Herc's fingers and it's too much. God, it's too much.

He's still groaning when time seems to sort itself out, his hands wind their way into Herc's hair and he's hot all over, Scott coming in close behind him, solid and insistent, kissing his neck, the backs of his ears, his jaw. 

"What was that?" Raleigh asks, though a part of him knows the answer and the rest doesn't want to know. Herc's hand is still on him, stroking, and he _can't._ Just can't think straight, or keep still, or stop making sounds like he's never made before in his life. Breathy, needy little moans that make Herc smile and lean up to kiss his mouth again.

Raleigh watches the world disappear, sees his lashes coming down as he closes his eyes and Herc's thumb catches where he's stroking, agonizingly slow. He feels the lurch start in his gut, the way each and every nerve where he's being touched seems to spark with it. The press of Scott's nose into his hair, the heat of his mouth. Herc's thumb still, strumming across the head of his cock and Raleigh's hips jerk, his entire body pushing itself into the motion. He hears a low whine, knows that it's coming from him because he can feel and taste it in his mouth, and he turns his eyes up to look at Herc but they keep rolling back, and he can't stop the slackening of his jaw, the whine widening out into a surprised keen as the movement that started somewhere down low surges out through him, waves of the most intense feeling of release he's ever known. 

He breathes in, hard, gathering himself and staring at Herc's blue, blue eyes.

"You like that?" Scott asks, amused warmth to his voice as he strokes Raleigh's back, soothing touches up and down his spine. "Shit, Herc, we're keeping him. We can keep him, right?"

Herc laughs, cards his fingers through Raleigh's hair. "Spectacularly beautiful, when you come. I'm just... gonna throw that out there."

Raleigh's still retrieving his senses, collapses onto Herc's chest with a soft, defeated sound. 

"Sorry, sweetheart. Couldn't help myself."

"He's a fuckin' sap after sex," Scott says. Raleigh's listening to them both, hearing the words they're saying, but he can't respond.

"Yeah, and you're downright wicked. Could've warned the boy."

"It's better this way. You like that trick, Raleigh?" Scott asks.

"Mmmm," Raleigh says. 

"Think we broke him. Should I tell him that was just a warm-up?"

" _Scott._ "

Raleigh drifts in and out for a while, aware of them moving around him, of his pants being removed, of a hand on his chest, lips on his throat. He hears them, watches them for a while. Curls into Herc's side when he's pulled close, sighing when Scott covers him from the other side. He hasn't felt so safe in a long time, and it's overwhelming.

"Bird?" He mumbles, after a while. Scott lazily traces the same path his teeth had taken earlier, and kisses between Raleigh's shoulder blades. 

"Only ever heard of nine birds in the world, and three of them are on this ship. You're like them, but... not exactly the same. Just like two Drifters aren't the same. Don't you feel it sometimes, Raleigh? Just under your skin." Scott spreads his hand over Raleigh's left shoulder. "Beating so fast you don't really notice it, beyond a kind of... vibration. Right here. Slowed right down, I felt them. You're a bird, Raleigh. Trust me."

"I never knew," Raleigh says. "I don't-" He shrugs, wondering if he should have known. Should have felt something before, like Scott said. "I still don't understand what it means."

Scott yawns, kisses Raleigh's hair. "Don't worry about it right now. Go to sleep."


	4. Preparation

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Herc's preparing for battle, while Raleigh and Scott pay Newt a visit.

When Raleigh wakes, he realises three things. One, the ship is in motion. Two, Herc's no longer in bed with him and three, Scott's morning wood is both impressive, and pressed against his hip.

"Mornin'," he slurs, turning over with some effort because Scott is also heavy and wrapped around him tightly. "Where'd Herc go?"

"Anchor's up. 'spect he's with Stacker. He'll be back later." Scott replies, sleepily. He settles in again when Raleigh finally situates himself, moves lazily against him. "Wanna do stuff?"

Raleigh grins, kisses Scott's closed eye. "Yeah, just no... uh. You know."

"Nah, don't worry. No fucking. Scout's honour."

+

"What was the long story?" Raleigh asks, taking the clean pants that Scott hands him. They're a little loose, but he has a belt to cinch them in, and he pulls a clean sweater - also Scott's - over his head, while Scott searches for another for himself. "Herc and his fire?"

"Not mine to tell. You know... everyone's on this boat because there was nowhere else to go. This place isn't just sanctuary, it's home. Stacker founded it when his sister... Probably better if you don't ever bring that up when he's around, though. He brought Mako in first. She was just a kid... A lot younger than you."

"Does it really work? Fighting back?"

"So far, sure. But, like I said, they've been escalating lately. We keep looking for other ways, but they just keep coming."

"Where do they come from? And why don't you use your... warping? I mean, when they attack, can't you slow them down or something?" Raleigh sits down on the edge of the bed, pulls his boots over and starts putting them on.

"Tried. It's easier with an audience in the Dome. They're all in one place, they sit still and they watch. Kaiju? They get everywhere, I can't keep track of them all, and if I don't know where they are, I don't have full control."

"You know, when I drifted with Herc, we were on their ship. Have you ever-"

"We've tried." Scott says, shrugging. "Destroyed some of the boats they send out against us. They just keep coming. There's got to be, like, a flagship somewhere or something. Some place they call home like the Ark is for us, we just haven't been able to find it."

"There's got to be a way, though. It was right there. We were winning."

Scott looks at him for a long moment. "Maybe you should talk to Newt."

"You don't believe we could win?"

"I believe what Herc sees in the drift. But I think you should talk to Newt about how to find their ship, if you think that's what we need to do. Honestly? I don't think chasing these guys down is the best idea, but if Herc saw it? I guess it's worth trying."

Raleigh laces his second boot, and stands up, catching Scott's sweater in his fist. "Last night," he says, already feeling his cheeks getting hot. 

Scott smiles, his face softening a little, and bends to rub his nose over Raleigh's cheek, kiss the top of his cheekbone. "Every night, if you want. Herc was right, you were... Devastating."

"He said that?"

"Something like it. Do you know who the last person was to come into our bed?"

Raleigh shakes his head, his heart starting to sink.

"No-one. That first drift, Raleigh. Messed Herc right up. And me? Fuck, I knew the moment I laid eyes on you out on the deck. You're something else."

"A bird," Raleigh offers, with a timid smile.

"Different. Come on. It'll be after noon by the time Herc gets back, we'll go find Newt now."

+

Newt has his rooms on the other side of the ship, and Raleigh doesn't know why he's surprised that they're shared with another guy. He's pretty sure that everyone on board is in some kind of relationship with someone else. He's in the middle of a heated discussion about something, judging by the yelling he and Scott can hear through the door when they approach. Scott knocks, and knocks again before Newt answers, pushing his glasses up his nose and trying to straighten his crooked tie. 

"Who is it?" a voice asks from inside.

"Hansen and the new guy," Newt yells, over his shoulder. 

"It's Raleigh," Scott says, leaning into the room. "Can we come in?"

"Of course you _can_ come in," the irritated voice says, coming closer. "You may, also, enter. Something I can help you with?"

"Actually we're here to see Newt."

Raleigh tries not to look at the other guy, just takes a step back as Newt comes out of the room and pulls the door mostly closed behind him. "See, Hermann? I'm useful! So, fellas. What's up?"

"Raleigh here has this theory that if we can get to the Kaiju's flagship, we can destroy the bloody lot of them. Wondered if you had any thoughts on how we might find it."

"We've tried to find it before, Scott, you know that. They're always one step ahead. Only way we're going to figure out a way to get onto that boat without being seen... I don't know. I mean, if you had something physical from one of them, I could read it, that could help find a weakness maybe."

"Read it?" Raleigh asks.

"It's kind of like what Herc does with people, but Newt-"

"In that world out there, they call it psychometry. Being able to determine an object's past just by touching it. In here, we're known as Readers. Same deal, just less scientifically defined. Not that I don't appreciate what science has accomplished, but you'll have noticed there's plenty it can't explain."

"How will this help find the ship?"

"Uh, well. Raleigh, right? If I can get hold of something that's _been_ on that ship, I'll be able to see the ship itself. Maybe there's something about it that can lead us to it. I'm guessing that's the plan?"

Scott nods, though Raleigh can tell he's just as uncertain.

"I have something," Raleigh says, his voice small. "A knife."

"A knife?"

"Yeah, it's... One of those things carried it. Would that be enough?"

"They're not things, you know, they're..." Newt pauses, fiddles with his glasses again, glancing at Scott. "It might be. Listen, bring it by later, okay?"

"Oh. Sure, okay. Thanks."

"Maybe get someone to tell you the whole story soon, too."

+

Herc takes the drink Stacker offers him, his hands shaking and his skin still damp with sweat. 

"So, our latest recruit is a bird?"

Herc finishes the glass in a few long swallows, sitting back with a wince against the cool metal wall behind him. 

"Take your time, Herc," Stacker says, in a way that suggests they don't have all that much time anyway. Herc closes his eyes, feels the fire burning at his core, and reaches blindly for his discarded shirt. 

"Bird. Didn't see it at first, but... Scott agrees. Different to the Weis. Still a bird, though." Herc licks at his dry lips, pulls his shirt over his head and opens his eyes to stare at the floor. "Took out a Kaiju captain single-handedly. Beautiful."

"Are you okay, Herc?"

"Five solid hours drifting?" Herc's eyes swivel up to look at Stacker; he sees the slight recoil in his friend's stance. "I know we have to do it, I know that. I need to go, I have to get back."

"How is this kid going to be our best hope, exactly?"

"I don't know." Herc pushes against the wall, getting himself up and onto his feet. He hates this feeling, like he's just a tool. A weapon, to be charged with drifting and used whenever Stacker needs him. If not for Scott, it wouldn't feel like freedom at all. "I don't think he is, I just think he's going to show the rest of us the way."

"Where is he now?"

"With Scott, probably." Herc doesn't say that he left the two of them in bed together that morning. He likely doesn't need to, not after five hours with Stacker's life flashing through his head, and glimpses from his own undoubtedly bleeding through the drift.

"Go to him. The sooner we can end all of this, the better."

+

"Where's Raleigh?" Herc leans in the doorway, trying to look something other than how he feels. 

"Shower." Scott turns then, his eyes narrowing. "We just got back from the Kwoon, heading over to Newt's after... Herc, are you going to come inside?"

"Yeah. Just don't, okay?"

Scott gets up, his frown only deepening as he gets closer to Herc. "Stacker had you there this whole time? Herc, for fuck's sake. He can't _do_ this. You're a bloody drifter, not a soldier."

"But we _are_ fighting a war here, aren't we? Just forget it, it's no worse than last night's burn, it's just what happens." Herc sighs when Scott touches him, when cool hands frame his face and hold him, gently. "We're heading into open waters and you and I both know it won't be long before they come. I have to be ready for that, and Stacker's the only one who's able and willing to hold a continuous drift with me for as long as we need. You'd break it off after an hour because you care too much," Herc says, stroking his thumb over Scott's lips. "I'm burning, Scotty, but the Kaiju'll burn too."

"Maybe not for much longer," Scott says, pulling Herc's head to his shoulder. "You're a red hot mess, for fuck's-"

"Hey. Hush. What do you mean?"

"Raleigh has the knife from the Kaiju that killed his brother. We're taking it to Newt tonight, gonna see if reading it can get us any closer to figuring out how we can end this. For good." Scott strokes his fingers through Herc's hair and leans back, and the hope in his eyes is almost too hard to look at, except that Herc remembers what he saw in the drift. They were fighting, and they were winning. "No more of our people have to die."

"If we take them on at source, people are going to die. Scott, just let me, I need to sit. I'm tired, I can't think..." Herc leans into his brother, lets himself be settled onto the couch and doesn't even protest when Scott fusses about getting him something to drink, just closes his eyes and listens to him moving around. The low hum of the ship, the shower in their bathroom shutting off. Scott comes back with a glass of water, which Herc drinks too fast. Drifting with a dozen different people a night is nothing like spending five hours locked into one person's head. And Stacker's... Stacker. Herc aches all over, battered and bruised by it all.

He's curled into Scott's side when he hears Raleigh come shuffling out of the bathroom, turns his head just enough to watch him. _Who the hell is this kid_ , he wonders.

"Do you want me to go?" Raleigh asks, seeing the two of them huddled together. 

Herc shakes his head, lifting his arm and extending his hand to pull Raleigh in. "Sorry about the heat," he mutters, kissing the top of Raleigh's head, nuzzling at his hair. 

"What happened?"

"We have several operational weapons systems attached to this ship, but Stacker still thinks my brother's better than all of them," Scott growls, his grip on Herc's chest tightening for a second before his hand relaxes, fingertips following the bright streaks of blue-gold visible even through Herc's shirt. "I'm sorry, it's... It's like you're a means to an end to him."

"We all are. But he's given us this place. Where else could we have what we have, and do what we do?"

"And when this is all over? Are we planning on staying?"

Herc shrugs, tries instead to change the subject, or at least take Scott's focus off him. "Scott tells me you might have a way for us to find the Kaiju fleet's flagship. A knife?"

"Right. It, uh... I pulled it out of Yancy after..." Raleigh gulps, the memory still too close, made even more vivid from his recent recollection of it in the drift. "I pulled it out, I don't know why. I should have held onto him instead, I don't even know where he is now. Where his body ended up, I mean."

"So Newt's going to take a look," Herc says, his hand in Raleigh's hair now, trying to comfort him.

"He said it might help. I don't know, maybe it will. I can't believe a few days ago I didn't even know there was a name for these things, or any reason behind what they did to us. My parents must have known. They had to, it just doesn't make sense any other way. Why wouldn't they tell us?"

"Maybe they were just trying to keep you safe. Sometimes it works. If you don't know there's something there to tap into, you just never try," Herc says, soft and quiet. "Depends what it is, I guess. Your mum, she... She passed when you were still young?"

"She went out one morning and never came home. Car accident. Dad fell to pieces afterward, Jaz left to live with our Aunt. Me and Yancy stayed to take care of Dad, but when he... When he was gone too, it was just the two of us."

"Sounds rough," Scott murmurs. 

"We were okay. We had each other."

"Oh, we know that tune too. Raleigh, we'll find that ship and we'll make them all pay for the things they've done. Can't tell you how many families they've torn apart-"

"Too fucking many," Herc says, his voice a little tight.

"We'll make the world safe again. We will."


	5. Fight and Flight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> A swarm of kaiju attack the Ark.

The alarm sounds, before they have the chance to speak to Newt. Raleigh doesn't know what's going on when it starts, but Scott and Herc are dropping everything mid-meal, hurrying towards a locker beside the door to their rooms. Raleigh stands from the table and fights not to cover his ears against the urgent wailing of the siren.

"Kaiju?" he asks, and Herc just turns around and Raleigh watches his entire body flare to life, and it no longer strikes him as beautiful like it did the first night. Now, he looks lethal.

"Don't move from that spot."

"What? I'm coming with you guys, I can-"

"Stop." Herc's hand lands on Raleigh's chest, solid. "Do you know your way around this ship on your own? I know Tendo's shown you the evac systems, but in the middle of a Kaiju attack they're useless, believe me. So stay put this time, okay? We've got this."

Raleigh frowns, but gives Herc a short nod. "Fine."

"I _mean_ it. We just found you, I'm not going to risk-"

"What about the drifts? I was there, there was nothing wrong with me."

"Yes, because you're going to stay right here and wait for us to come back." Herc's tone brooks no argument, and however much Raleigh wants to go with them, he has no choice but to back down.

"Herc," Scott urges, opening the door. Raleigh can see people racing by, and he desperately wants to join in the fight but he knows he has to trust Herc. 

"We'll come straight back here when it's over."

Raleigh nods again, and watches them run out, the door swinging closed behind them. _Just be safe._

+

It's chaos up on deck. Power's been knocked out somehow in the radar and weapons systems, there's no light and there are kaiju everywhere. The ship's sealed tight enough from 3-deck down, but there's always still a risk that somehow other levels will be infiltrated. The entrances, therefore, are heavily manned, and Scott has to make a path through the shielding wall of bodies for Herc to get through to the main deck.

He looks up at the forward bridge, knows that Stacker's in there somewhere, watching his crew take on this threat to protect his ship, his livelihood. He's still pissed about the five hour drift and the way Herc's burning up, because he knows exactly the toll it takes on his brother, physically and mentally. But he can't worry about that right now. They're the only ones who can deal with the situation until the weapons systems come back online. 

Scott sets about distorting the view of the deck to their advantage, disorienting the kaiju so that Herc and the Kaidanovskys can start cutting, burning and brawling a swathe through the middle of them. It's a huge swarm this time, maybe the largest one yet, and they're working in teams to try and break the swarm down into more manageable groups. 

The way the kaiju are coming at them is something Scott doesn't remember them doing before, and it means he has to work twice as hard to stay on top of as many as he can, and pray that the ones who slip through the cracks in his warping don't make it too far. The Weis stick close to him, a circle of bright red armour, golden swords flashing. 

He sees Chuck go past with a gun in one hand and an old cricket bat in the other, closely followed by Mako, sleek in her armour and bright blue war paint. Throws up another warp for the two of them, an additional tower in the middle of the deck that the Kaiju start trying to get around, or over, while Chuck and Mako can go straight through it and start hacking and battering the kaiju to pieces. He's soaked in sweat from the effort of trying to hold up the warps, to keep them strong enough that it'll help, that it'll somehow be enough.

It's like a show all of its own, Scott thinks, switching his focus briefly back to Herc, watching him vaporize another wave breaking off from the first swarm with a massive blue fireball. There's a shout, and he sees Sasha disappear beneath a heaving mass, Aleksis swinging his _shashka_ to try and cut his way through to her. Scott hears himself yelling, _this is all wrong! There's too many of them!_ He sees Herc, still burning, get lifted and thrown, and the sound Scott makes is almost inhuman. His warps falter, and the Weis tighten their circle around him, doing all that they can to keep him safe while he screams for someone to tell him that his brother's okay. Chuck's already charging away from Mako to go to his father's aid, to bull his way through the group that has Herc and the Kaidanovskys overcome.

Looking up at the bridge, Scott sees Stacker through a blur of sweat and tears, wishes he would _do_ something, just fucking _fight_ already. Then he sees something else, swooping down, stars blacked out behind massive dark wings. The kaiju are howling and closing in on Chuck, on Herc, on all of them, but Scott can't stop looking up. This beautiful, pitch-black bird, diving for the deck, for the swarm, and Scott shields himself instinctively, listens to the impact. 

The howls take on a different tone, and he hears Chuck shouting, the crack of bones even above the chaos. One of the kaiju falls to the deck a few feet away from where he and the triplets are standing, broken, torn to shreds. He's rooted in place, watching the bird tear through the swarm with its beak and its hooked black talons. When he looks up at the bridge again, Stacker's leaning forward, his hand against the glass. Scott could swear he's smiling.

He remembers then that he has a job to do, grits his teeth and throws up a warp around Herc so that his brother can be gotten out and the bird - _Raleigh_ \- can take out the remaining kaiju. With a path cleared, Mako and Chuck find new confidence, fighting back to back as they've done so many times before, the twins echoing their technique against the smaller group further along the deck.

It's slow, but they're winning. The biggest battle of the war to date, and they're winning. Maybe, Scott thinks, maybe there's hope for an end to it all.

"Get Herc," Scott shouts, and the Weis move as one from his side to where Herc's lying on the deck. He stays, shifting his warps to keep the kaiju confused while they're pushed back, cut down. He stays to keep watching Raleigh, and keep him safe.

+

"I told him not to leave the fucking room!" Herc yells, shaking off the medic who's trying to assess him. "Where is he?"

"Oi!" Scott snaps back. "Calm the fuck down. If it weren't for him, you'd be completely fucking dead by now, so just don't, alright? He's with Sasha, getting treatment, which is what you need so sit your arse down and let the medics do their job. Don't fucking make me knock you out, Herc."

They both look around at the sound of running feet, and Scott half expects to see Raleigh come through the door. It's Chuck, pale and worried looking, though he relaxes at the sight of Herc still trying to insist that he's fine and doesn't need to be here.

"Dad," he says, slowing down as he gets to Herc's bedside. "I saw you-"

"I'm alright," Herc says, gruffly.

"Don't be a cunt," Scott mutters, smiling when Herc gives him the finger. 

"Just a broken bone, nothing to worry about. Are _you_ okay?"

"Tried to get to you, there were just too many of them."

"Don't I know it."

Scott leans back against the wall, watching the two of them. The way everything always changes when the Kaiju get involved, when they're threatened. He knows Chuck doesn't really blame Herc for Angie's death, that it's just sometimes easier to fall back on that because Herc's the one who's always _right there._ But when there's kaiju blood on his clothes and hands, Chuck remembers exactly what happened the night his mother died. That Herc did everything within his power, and it still wasn't enough.

"Uncle Scott."

The kid's looking at him, and he focuses again. "Huh?"

"That bird-"

"Raleigh. I don't know, I don't know how it happened."

"He saved dad. I mean, not just dad, but..."

Scott smiles, looking between Chuck and Herc. "I'll tell him you said thanks, don't worry. Herc, you're going to be okay here if I-"

"Go on. I won't be long," Herc adds, with a glare at the medic. 

+

Raleigh's staring at nothing when Scott finds where he's being treated. "Hey," he says, and Sasha looks over at him and lifts her shoulder. Aleksis is by her side, glaring at him. Scott doesn't think he's ever seen Aleksis when he's _not_ glaring, so he doesn't take it personally.

"Raleigh?"

Raleigh's eyes move, and when they settle on Scott he's up fast, wrapping his arms around Scott's shoulders and clinging tightly to him.

"I'm sorry, I couldn't," Raleigh says, and Scott gets a hand into his hair and kisses the top of his head. 

"Tell me what happened."

"I don't know. I just knew I had to get to you both, and then-"

Scott jumps and Sasha shouts when Raleigh's wings break free again, ripping into the air in a huge mass of shiny black feathers.

Raleigh looks up at him, distressed and pleading. "Then this happened. Why now? Why not when Yancy..."

"You never knew you could, before. It's okay, sweetheart." Scott bites his lip, glancing over at Sasha, who's watching them intently. "I promise it's okay. We won."

"We drove them back, you mean. They've attacked like this before, haven't they?"

"Not quite like tonight, but yeah. Every time we're out on open waters. We should have told you everything, I'm sorry we didn't."

Raleigh shakes his head, huge wings folding in behind him. "Can we go somewhere else? Where'd they take Herc?"

"He's in medical - nothing serious, he's okay. Bitching, mostly. Doc give you the all clear?"

"I'm fine."

+

Raleigh's perfectly still, only shivering when Herc reaches and strokes the outer edge of one of his wings.

"I've never seen a bird like you," he murmurs. 

"I thought you said the Weis were-"

"Not like you," Herc says again. 

Scott comes back then, having been waylaid by Stacker, and they both turn to watch him close and lock the door. "Don't ask," he says, a thunderous look on his face. It softens slightly, when Herc motions for him to come over.

Raleigh holds his breath, Herc's hand on his back and Scott stopping in front of him, reaching over his shoulder to get to dark feathers.

"I'm having trouble putting them away," Raleigh says quietly, gasping when both brothers lean, one to kiss his left shoulder, the other to suck softly at his throat. He feels Herc laughing into his skin, closes his eyes when there's a scrape of stubble and Herc moves up to whisper in his ear, _don't, then._

Scott makes some sound of agreement, and Raleigh leans into him, Herc close behind.

"He always wants to fuck after a fight," Herc says, and Raleigh knows already; he can feel Scott's hips tight against his own, feel how hard he's getting. "Sorry, little brother, 'fraid you're going to have to do most of the work here..."

"Who's sorry?" Scott asks, giving Raleigh's shoulder another soft bite before lifting his head to kiss Herc's mouth. Raleigh feels a shiver go through him, hears the way his wings move with it, and finds himself wishing he'd been quicker, got up there sooner. Stopped Herc from being hurt at all.

"Do you want this, Raleigh? Us?"

"Yes," Raleigh says, weak with just how much he _does_ want it. 

+

Herc's arm is laid out across a pillow to the side of him, _out of harm's way_ , as Scott put it. Raleigh's giving Herc's sac soft kitten-licks, under Scott's careful guidance, and it's driving Herc out of his fucking mind. 

Scott knows it, too, keeps looking up at him with a satisfied little smirk, as if the past two hours were just a dream and this is all they've ever done. 

"You're warping, you fucker," Herc groans, goosebumps on his thighs after the slow warmth of Raleigh's mouth on the root of his cock. 

"Only a bit," Scott says, grinning and reaching down to curve his palm between Herc's legs, massage his balls none too gently. "Good though, isn't it?"

Herc's sweating by the time Scott drops the warp, and Raleigh's straddling his stomach, heat and the tickle of feathers where the wings touch his hips. "Fuck the boy," he tells Scott, dragging Raleigh down with his good hand, bringing him into a biting kiss that's full of all the things he wants to do, _will_ be doing just as soon as his arm's mended. Fucking Kaiju.

Scott takes his hand off Raleigh's back, and Herc feels the cool wet of his fingers being coated with slick and he moans, kisses Raleigh harder and lets Scott press his lubed fingers in and down over Raleigh's hole. He strokes, feeling Raleigh squirming on top of him, the vibrations of every desperate little sound he makes transmitted onto his tongue, down his throat and into his core and it's good. Holy hell, it's good.

They need this, too. To forget everything that happened up on the main deck, just for a while. Tomorrow can wait.

Herc grins when he feels Scott's fingers in against his own, more slick, and Raleigh's whimpering now and it's sweet and if Herc wasn't feeling so damned battered, he'd be... well, not this. Raleigh's jaw gets slack when Herc pushes the tip of his finger past the tight ring, and Herc just lets Raleigh's head fall to rest on his shoulder, gives Scott a quiet nod when he looks. _Yeah, another warp if you can manage it._

Everything slows down, and Herc's able to savour the feeling of Raleigh's quiet surrender to him, the sight of muscles gradually relaxing, the whisper of feathers as they shudder, a ripple of black that goes on and on until Raleigh breathes out suddenly, seeks out Herc's mouth. Another warp, and Herc enjoys the scrape of Raleigh's teeth on his tongue before they find the right angle and settle into the comfort of kissing, another place to connect while Herc's finger sinks a little deeper, pulls back again and Herc knows Raleigh's heart is pounding; it feels fast in spite of the warp.

_Sssh._ It's a drawn out whisper, Scott's voice, and Herc hitches when he feels Scott's finger against his own, slow, _slow_ pressure that Raleigh eventually opens up to, his tongue stilling completely against Herc's while he just breathes. Warm and soft, and the wings shudder again and Herc knows how agonizing it must be, because he's been on the receiving end of Scott's warps plenty of times before.

_That's it. That's it._ Distorted and far away, and Herc opens his eyes, palm cupping Raleigh's ass, finger buried and moving with Scott's, his cock aching with all of it.

Raleigh's a trembling mess when the warp abruptly breaks, and Herc knows it's enough. Passes Scott the slick and nudges at Raleigh's chin until the boy lifts his head and goes back to kissing Herc, slow and soft and already panting.

Scott pulls Raleigh back a little, kneels between Herc's outstretched legs, curves one hand around Raleigh's hip and guides his cock with the other. Herc eases off as well, wanting to watch Raleigh's face, to see the way his eyes close tight for a second, his mouth thinning out then opening, the way his throat extends slightly as he pushes back into it, and finally the unfurling of those wings again, a great drape of black feathers that covers the bed, seems to absorb all of the light in the room.

Herc watches Raleigh reach up and back, watches Scott take hold of his arm and pull it gently behind him, kissing Raleigh's throat and smiling at the sounds coming from it. _Okay?_ Scott asks, and Raleigh nods, his brow slightly creased. Herc lifts his good arm, traces the thin scars on Raleigh's shoulder - _Knifehead_ , he'd called the kaiju who did it - and drops his hand to take hold of his cock, of Raleigh's. Loose grip, his fingers still slick, and he almost swears when Raleigh's eyes open to look at him, and lower to watch his hand.

There's no jealousy, watching and feeling his brother fuck Raleigh first. A mild sense of disappointment that it isn't him doing it, but he knows that he will, one day soon. Besides, Raleigh's cock against his own is enough, the curl of Raleigh's fingers over his fist... is enough.

He almost asks for another warp, somewhere near the point of orgasm, but Scott's almost there with them and it's good to feel it this way, too. To watch the way Raleigh starts to fall apart, Scott's mouth on the edge of one of his wings, fingers tight at his hip, his fingers wrapped with Herc's stroking harder now. Purposeful.

Raleigh comes first, and it's as pretty as it was the first time, but with the wings as well? 

"Fuck..." Scott mutters, his mouth landing on Raleigh's shoulder and he groans loudly, hitching and bucking, holding himself deep for a second before he lets go, his fingers digging bruises into Raleigh's hip.

Herc's lazier about it, enjoying the sound of surprise from Raleigh, the satisfied look on Scott's face when he lifts his chin over Raleigh's shoulder to watch.

"Mmm, damn," Herc says, eventually. Rumbling contentment, his fingers digging into thick feathers. He reaches, pulling them both down against him, feeling Scott's hand over his own, buried in Raleigh's wings. He knows Stacker will have questions, knows that they all will but right now? Nobody's going anywhere. The world and the war can wait.

+

"How many times has this ship been attacked?" Raleigh asks, his head resting against Scott's chest, his arm slung across, fingers touching Herc's side. 

"Most times we're out on open waters. Don't ask me why that is, it's just the way it happens. We've never seen anything like last night before, though. It's been getting steadily worse for a while, but... I don't know, I just don't know where they're all coming from any more. We really need to get that knife to Newt as soon as we can and come up with a plan."

Raleigh nods, though he's not at all inclined to move just yet. 

"Would this have happened if we'd never drifted?" He's embarrassed to ask, given that he's buck-ass naked over the two of them.

"Might've taken a little longer, but yes," Herc says, turning his head to look at Raleigh. "It would have."

"You know, I still don't understand why the wings never showed before."

"Full of questions, isn't he?" Scott observes, amused. Raleigh shivers at the stroke to his back; the wings have withdrawn now, but he can still feel them there beneath his skin, and Scott's touch is like a quick little shock through him.

"I don't know either, but I guess we're all different. Some of us know from the outset what we are, and it's a lot easier to accept it when you know. To let whatever you are come out." Herc shrugs, catching Raleigh's hand before it can wander any lower. "Play fair, eh? It'll be a while before I'm back up to fighting speed."

Raleigh smiles, stroking the short hairs on Herc's chest instead. "Are there a lot of us? We can't all be on this one ship, right?"

"Plenty more, spread around, sure." Herc sighs. "Listen, Raleigh..." His shoulders sag, and he looks helplessly over at Scott. 

"We'll change things," Scott says. "We will." 

+

"What's that?" Raleigh asks, looking up at the sound coming through the PA.

Scott glances at Herc, who reaches for Raleigh's hand. "We need to go up to main deck."

"We have dead to bury," Scott says, shrugging at the look Herc gives him. "He's one of us, we're not hiding this from him."

Raleigh swallows hard, nods. "I'm not staying behind again."

+

Raleigh stands beneath Herc's umbrella, while the names of those who didn't survive the battle are read out. Stacker makes his way down the row of bodies, stopping to cover their faces after each name is said. Raleigh doesn't know who any of them are, but that doesn't make it any easier to watch. He realises after a while that some names are still being read out even though there are no more bodies. He thinks about asking why, asks something else instead.

"What'll happen to them?"

"Sea'll take 'em." Herc's gaze is fixed firmly forward, though he moves a little closer to Raleigh's side.

"There are so many..."

"You don't have to stay, Raleigh, it's okay."

Raleigh looks across to where Stacker's standing, sees the hard set of his jaw as he looks over the dead.

"How many times have you had to do this?"

Herc sighs, and Raleigh listens to the rain bouncing off their umbrella.

"Too many. I'm hoping for this to be the last time, but... I don't know, Raleigh. I can't see an end to it, even though I've seen it."

Raleigh's about to say something else when the singing starts. Mako first, her voice almost lost in the rain and wind. Clear though, and when others join in, Raleigh hears it better. He doesn't know what the words are, or what they mean, but it sounds beautiful and mournful all at once. Herc squeezes his hand where they're both holding the umbrella, a second before he joins in the song as well. 

One by one, to the tune of the crew's voices, the bodies are lifted and carried to a drop point. Raleigh closes his eyes after the third and simply leans into Herc to listen, his heart heavy as he remembers his brother. He hopes that the knife will be enough. That everything he saw in the last drift comes to pass, and that this ship and all those aboard it - not to mention others like them, scattered throughout the Pacific Rim and beyond - will be able to live their lives in peace.

+

After the burials, the crew get back to work. Riggers put the Dome up on the main deck, so that rehearsals for the next port's shows can begin. Scott's a part of it, so it's Herc who goes with Raleigh to see Newt.

He's holding the knife, because Raleigh doesn't like to touch it. Herc can understand that, especially after the night they had. He's still sore everywhere, and his arm's going to take so long to heal right that he won't be taking part in any shows for at least a couple of stops. He's pretty sure Stacker's pissed about that, but nobody's going to say anything. They've all suffered.

Newt invites them inside this time, and Herc smiles at Raleigh trying not to stare at everything, from the boards full of maps and graphs to Newt's piano in the corner.

"You have it?" Newt asks, stopping in front of an empty table.

Herc puts the knife down in the centre of the table, and takes a seat, motioning for Raleigh to do the same.  
,   
"You know I've never read anything of the kaiju's before, this is pretty exciting. I know it's gonna work, it's got to work, but uh... if for some reason it _doesn't?_ Just remember this is the first time I've done this with... Yeah. Okay. Shit, that's a big... knife."

Herc notices Raleigh's mouth tighten at that remark, and puts an arm around him. 

"Can we just get this done, Geiszler?"

"Uh, yeah. Sure, sure. Let me just..." Newt wipes his hands down his shirt, and reaches to pick up the knife, thumb running over the blade while he gets a grip on the hilt.

Herc squeezes Raleigh's shoulder when Newt's fingers turn the colour of the knife, when the decorative pattern on the hilt starts to wind its way up Newt's arm. "Just watch," he whispers.

Raleigh isn't sure what he's looking for, but he knows he's never seen anything like this before. The knife, where it touches Newt, seems to melt into him. Newt's eyes clear, and Raleigh sees it when whatever started at his fingertips bleeds into them, wonders what it is that Newt sees. What it is that he gets lost in, while the knife seems to become a part of him, his skin steely and hard like the blade, the pattern from the hilt reaching his eyes.

He doesn't know why he'd expected it to last longer, but it's over in five minutes. The colours and the patterns retreat back to the knife, and Newt closes his eyes, shaking his head as if to clear the last of it.

"Huh," he says, when he's let go of the knife completely. 

Raleigh swallows, leaning forward. "Didn't it work?"

"Oh... what, no it worked. I'm, uh. I'm sorry about your brother." Newt pulls his hands back, off the table. "The ship's out on the Pacific. South from here, so if you think you can have Stacker change our course, go ahead and ask him. If you want to mess with what I saw, by all means. Go ahead and ask him."

"How bad was it?" Herc asks.

"They're preparing for a final wave of attacks. Designed to wipe all of us-" Newt waves a hand to indicate he means the _entire_ ship, "- right out. Four hundred of them, and one mean looking, _leviathan_ son of a bitch I'm guessing is their captain. The troops they've sent out here before are like pocket change compared with this ship. How are we going to take on something like that and win?"

"With a Roc."

"I'm sorry, with a _rock?_ This isn't David meets Goliath, Herc... How are-"

"No, not... Newt, were you even watching what was going on last night?"

"Yeah, you know that war isn't really my thing, right? I'm not a soldier, not like the rest of you. So no. No, I wasn't watching. Sue me."

"R-o-c, Roc. Our latest addition."

Newt looks at Raleigh then, blinks and pushes his glasses back up his nose. "No way."

"What?" Raleigh asks.

"I might be wrong," Herc says, "but I've not heard of any other bird that big. The wings were only the half of it, Raleigh. I don't know how much you remember, but..."

"Not much, between knowing I needed to get to you and waking up in medical."

Herc nods, reaching to touch Raleigh's cheek. "Might be for the best." He looks at Newt, who's still watching them both. "We done here?"

"We're done. What are you going to do?"

"We're going to go and talk to Stacker."


	6. Change of Course

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Raleigh learns more about where the kaiju came from, and Herc outlines his plan to end the war with them once and for all.

Stacker's in the Dome as it turns out, overseeing the rehearsal for the next set of shows. He motions for Herc to wait, and turns back to watching the stage, where Mako's throwing daggers at Trevin, who's catching them all by their points and tossing them back to her. The exchange gets quicker and quicker, until Mako throws all six daggers at once and throws up a wooden sword before Trevin volleys all six back at her. Raleigh barely hears any stutter, all of the daggers hitting the sword and becoming embedded in the exact same moment. Mako turns to take her bow, Trevin moving to stand behind her, his hands on her hips to lift her high. Raleigh watches the way that she turns her head just a little, sees the smile that she gives Trevin, and he moves a little closer to Herc, who glances back at him, then at the stage.

"Hot, aren't they?" 

Raleigh nods, still watching them. "What is he? I know about Mako, but..."

"I was wondering when you'd get around to asking. Not just about him, but everyone else."

"Are you going to tell me?"

Herc smiles, shakes his head as Stacker finally turns to face them both. "Later."

"Gentlemen. Did you need me for something?"

"We know where the kaiju flagship is," Herc says. Then adds, "roughly."

"We need to sail south, sir," Raleigh adds. "From this point."

Stacker looks from Herc to Raleigh, his face unreadable. "South? The Pacific is a bloody big ocean, Herc, and we're looking for one ship, a ship we've never even seen before, a _ship_ we're not even sure is real. How do you think we're going to find it just by sailing south?"

"Send some scouts ahead. Newt's got some idea of how far we need to go before we're close, so keep him on the bridge with you. Four hundred kaiju, one captain, that's what Newt said. I know we'll find it."

"And what exactly do you think we're going to do then?" Stacker glances back at Mako who's looking over at the three of them. "Four _hundred_ kaiju? Herc..." Stacker moves further away from the stage, prompting Herc and Raleigh to follow him. "Even if we find this ship, which seems unlikely at best, impossible at worst, how can we take them out? We can't deal with four hundred of those things, not even with this boat under us. They blind us, every time, no matter what we do."

"I don't intend for us to fight them on this boat. We'll board theirs."

"They'll slaughter us before our feet hit the deck. Not a great plan, Herc. Do you know what it takes to turn this boat around? A wing and a prayer isn't going to be enough. I'm sorry Herc, but the answer's no."

"So, what? You're happy to let them keep attacking this boat, chipping away at us until there's nothing left of this circus, nothing left of who we are?"

Stacker's jaw tightens, and he takes a step closer. "Happy? You and I both know what those things are and where they came from. I am doing everything I can to hold the Ark together, I will _not_ jeapordize the safety of everyone on board for-"

"Then I'll find another fuckin' boat and go after them myself. Stacker, I _saw_ the end of this bloody war. One detour, and we could be free of them and the Blue for the rest of our lives."

"There is a line here, Herc. Be careful." Stacker shoots another look at Raleigh, and starts walking back toward the stage.

"Am I the only one who believes in us any more?" Herc shouts. Raleigh sees Scott striding across the Dome's floor towards them, and Stacker stops, still.

It's a warp, Raleigh realizes, the moment Scott reaches them. 

"You want to turn this ship around?"

"I want to sail on open waters without fearing for my life. I want everyone who's like us to be safe in their skins. Scott, don't just do this because you're pissed at him."

Scott looks back at Stacker, and shrugs. "Go. Let's find their damned ship and end this for good."

+

"He's going to kill us, when Scott lets him go," Raleigh says, when Herc returns from the bridge. "Also, you're not going anywhere near that boat."

"I don't need both hands to fight, Raleigh. I'm going."

"How many of them boarded this ship the other night? A hundred at most. They have a four hundred strong army, are we really going to take on so many of them?"

Herc scrubs his fingers through his hair, pacing. "We'll take Chuck. Mako, Scott. You'll be there. The Weis, Sasha and Aleksis, the Gages. Stacker'll have to come fight as well, he won't want to miss the chance to be a hero one more time. We'll take the fight to them, and we'll burn every last one of them to ash. Whatever it takes, because we've lost enough already."

"Okay." Raleigh reaches for Herc, if only to make him stop. Moves in, taking up his space to keep him from wearing a rut into the floor. "Okay, we'll do it. The drift's never wrong, that's what the sign says, right?" He kisses Herc's chin, just as there's a sharp shout from behind them.

"Aw, fuck," Herc mutters.

"You'd better have an _exceptional_ goddamn plan, Hansen," Stacker fumes, marching towards them. "And after this war's over, remind me to throw your brother in the brig. If we're still standing."

"How well does your armour fit these days, sir?" Herc asks, and Raleigh watches Stacker's eyes narrow, and braces himself.

"Is that your skewed idea of an apology, Hansen?"

"The only way we're going to do this is if we all muck in together. Sir, you built this circus for a reason, and I firmly believe that this is the reason. We have our last member, we're ready for the greatest show on earth."

"Have that rehearsed, did you?" Stacker's quieter now, looking between Herc and Raleigh. "He's a Roc. Why couldn't I see it before?"

"Took us all a while to figure out."

"You're okay with this plan, Raleigh?"

Raleigh nods, glad that Herc's there with him. There's something about Stacker that he finds utterly terrifying, though he doesn't know why, or even what it is.

"And you honestly think we can win this fight? For good?"

"I honestly do."

Stacker stares at Herc for a moment longer before giving a short nod. "Well, I'm not turning the damn boat around _again._ You'd better be right about this."

"If I'm wrong, none of us'll be left to hear the 'told you so'." 

"Bloody aussies," Stacker mutters. He takes a deep breath, and nods. "Get the crew together."

+

They're gathered in the Dome, and Raleigh realises just how many of them there are when he looks around. They all look worried, and he can't blame them. They buried their dead that morning, they're unsettled and afraid of what's coming. 

Raleigh's watching Herc outlining their plan of attack, which seems to boil down to getting aboard the flagship and killing everything in sight, when someone eases into the space beside him.

"Was it you? You convince my old man this was a good idea?"

"He saw what he saw in the drift, and he believes in it." Raleigh shrugs, side-eying Chuck. "Don't you?"

"Sounds a bit like a suicide mission, you ask me." 

Raleigh's about to say something else when he hears Stacker clearing his throat.

"We have been running for too long. How far will we have to go to be free? Some of you have seen firsthand what the Blue does to people like us, but _all_ of you made the right choice when you boarded the Ark. We've come so far, _together._ All I ask is that we go the extra mile and win this war together. We are by no means weak. We are a vassal of hope and this vessel, this Ark _has_ to survive. So we will take this war to their feet, we will fight. We. Will. _Win._ "

What had started as a low rumble during Stacker's speech now rises to a roar, and Raleigh straightens his back, the bird thrumming against his spine.

"Still sounds like a suicide mission," Chuck mutters.

"So you're not gonna fight?" 

Chuck looks towards Stacker, then grins at Raleigh. "Never said _that_ , now did I?"

+

"Can't sleep?" Scott asks, looking up from the book he's reading. Raleigh drops onto the couch beside him, shaking his head. 

"How am I going to fight when I don't even know how to... be what I am?"

"You do know how, though." Scott sighs, puts his book to one side instead. "Turn around."

Raleigh does as asked, turning until his back is to Scott, and shivers when Scott's fingers trail across his shoulder blades, down his back.

"Herc's going to be on that boat with us. Fighting single-handed, _literally_ , and neither of us are going to let anything happen to him."

"I know. But what can I do if I can't-"

"You will. We'll help, there's no need to worry. You've done it once, and the first time's always the hardest."

"Hey, you two. Woke up and the bed was empty, what's going on?" Herc settles onto the couch the other side of Scott, keeping his arm out of the way when Scott leans into his side. He drapes the other over Scott's shoulders, his hand wandering rapidly south.

"I was waiting for the alarm to sound, but I guess our change of course has thrown them off. Raleigh's just..." Scott smiles, when Raleigh turns to look at him. "Worrying. Fuck, Herc..."

Herc shrugs, carries on gently fondling Scott through his pants. "Worrying is good. Can't get too cocky, not before we even get there. You gonna help me out here, Raleigh? I've only got one hand."

Raleigh moves again, curling into Scott's body, leaning up to kiss his mouth.

"Woah, hey, I was trying to be helpful and you're - both of you - making thinking difficult."

"That's the idea. Everyone's thinking too much anyhow. The plan is this: we board their ship and kill 'em all. Destroy the hoard of Blue they've gotta have so that this never happens again. That's it. So stop overthinking things and trust in what we can _do._ "

Scott squirms, pushing his fingers through Raleigh's hair and lifting his hips into Herc's touches. "You should fuck the boy, Herc. Just in case what we can do isn't enough."

"What's the Blue?" Raleigh asks, biting at his lip.

"Something we'll tell you about after," Scott murmurs, groaning and leaning up to kiss Raleigh's throat. "Herc..."

"I can't. I'd love to, but-"

"Don't give me that about your buggered hand again. You're doing fine right now," Scott whimpers, closing his eyes, flushed.

"I was gonna say, I'm saving that pleasure. Something to celebrate our victory with."

"You're confident, then."

"Someone needs to be. Don't worry," Herc says to Raleigh. "I'm a man of my word."

Scott gasps, arching against Herc. "Finish it."

+

"You promised you'd tell me about everyone," Raleigh mumbles, drawing circles on Scott's chest but looking up at Herc. "Trevin, Stacker, everyone."

"The Gages are mimics. Pretty rare, and when it happens, it occurs in twins, so..." Herc trails off, seeing the look on Raleigh's face. "Yeah, you don't know what a mimic is, sorry. So Mako's a Sword, right? Anything with a blade, she's all over it. Bloody brilliant, you've seen her in action. If Trevin wasn't a mimic, he'd never have been able to do that act with her. It's like... they're echoes of what the rest of us are."

"If that's true, why don't they mimic you in a fight? Triple the firepower, right?"

"Because the fire's not the gift, it's the... side effect. Plus, he'd have to be almost right beside me the whole time. It works well for an act in the ring, but in the middle of a battle? Drifting's not particularly useful, right? Both of them are better with swords, and that's down to training."

"Huh." Raleigh sighs, moving to sit up, straddle Scott's hips. Herc watches him, mouth twitching at the vague sound of protest his brother makes. 

"Think you met your match, Scotty."

Raleigh grins at that, putting both hands flat on Scott's chest. "What about Stacker? I mean, I already know I wouldn't want to be on the wrong side of him, but there's more to him than that, right?"

"That might be putting it mildly, but yeah."

Raleigh waits a few moments, his fingers idly drawing shapes over Scott's skin. "So... Are you gonna tell me or what?"

"Don't get on the wrong side of him." 

"Ugh, fine. Keep your secrets."

Herc shakes his head, reaching to still Raleigh's hands. "Stacker's a Shield. Thing is, he's been behind this circus for so many years, he's falling to pieces."

"Shield? You mean-"

"The last time he used what he is to shield any of us was when Mako was in trouble."

"Just tell him everything, Herc. He should know, he's one of us now." Scott's hands lift to Raleigh's back, to stroke over his skin, the wings he knows lie beneath.

Herc takes a deep breath, sliding off the couch to pace to the other side of the room. Raleigh watches, wondering what the hell he's got himself into, really.

"The kaiju... What they are." He rubs a hand through his hair, looking to Scott for some assistance.

"It's what Stacker's going to become, some day. He's keeping it at bay for now. Internal shielding, which is why he can't keep the ship safe with it instead. If he tried, it'd kill him or turn him, and I don't know which is worse."

"I don't understand. How?" Raleigh shifts, looking between Scott and Herc. It's Herc who answers, eventually.

"The Blue... what turns people like us into those things? Started some years back, it was supposed to be a cure. Something to suppress what we're born with, so we could be..." Herc sighs, leaning back against the edge of a cabinet. "Normal. It didn't work. Stacker's sister was one of the first to use it. He had to watch everything he knew her to be die away, saw what she became."

"He'd signed up for the treatment after she did, had the Blue in his system too. When he realised it was going to do the same thing to him, he put up the internal shield to stop it from happening. He fought tooth and nail to take the drug off the market before too many more of us fell, but our community was already decimated. The Blue turned everyone who used it, made them into something else. The things you saw on deck the other night, that's what they became. They can't remember who they were, where they came from. The only thing that matters is destroying us or turning us."

"Turning... Is that why there are so many of them?"

"Yeah, that's... ah, fuck. That's the shitty part. Those of us they don't kill, they, you know." Herc shrugs, looking helplessly at Scott.

"You were lucky you got away."

"Isn't there a cure? An antidote to whatever the Blue is?" Raleigh asks

"That's something Gottlieb's been working on with Newt for the past few years, but so far they're no closer to an answer."

"Oh." Raleigh's pale, taking it all in.

"You alright there?" Scott asks.

"Yeah. I'm okay, I just... Why didn't anyone want to tell me this?"

Scott reaches for Raleigh's hand, twines their fingers together. "I guess we wanted you to know the good things about who and what you are, first. Maybe it was wrong to keep you in the dark, but now we're headed out to meet the kaiju head on? Yeah, can't let you go into that battle without knowing the enemy."

"They're not the enemy, though. Are they? They're people like us who got a raw deal."

"They're nothing like us any more, Raleigh. If we could bring them back, we would, but they don't even want to be saved any more. Killed anyone who tried to help them, and they'll do the same to you. You remember what they did to your brother, don't you?"

"I've never forgotten," Raleigh says, his voice low, clipped.

"And the people we buried. So yeah, they're the enemy. This is the war we're in."

Raleigh's quiet for a while, evidently trying to absorb all that he's been told. "Did my mom really die in a car accident?"

"Hey, don't start down that path," Scott says. "It's true there's been a lot of casualties in this war." Scott glances over at Herc, his shoulders dropping. "But they usually die trying to protect the likes of us."

"Like Herc's wife," Raleigh whispers.

"Sydney. Came for me and my family." Herc's jaw works like he's trying to hold himself together, and he turns away from them both because it's hard to talk about it, hard to think about that day. "I was still running hot from a drift with Angie. We were out in the yard, the three of us, and this... _thing_ came through the house like a hurricane. I tried-"

"Herc, you don't have to tell..." Raleigh climbs off the couch, off Scott, halfway across the room before he stops, because Herc's shoulders are shaking now.

"She told me to grab Chuck, so I did, and when I turned around the kaiju had a hold of her and she looked so afraid. I wanted to fight, but I knew it was too late. She had the Blue in her already, too much of it, I could see what it was doing to her, saw it all. The look in her eyes. I knew. And that fucking thing was laughing, I know it was, and I knew that me and Chuck were gonna be next and I still had that drift inside me so-"

"That's how you found out about the fire," Raleigh mutters. 

"She didn't want to be one of them. I'd already lost her, see? After that... After, I took Chuck and ran, it was all I could do."

"I'm sorry. She was... Like you? Like us?"

Herc feels Raleigh's hand against his back, lets himself be grounded by it. "She was," is all that he eventually replies. 

There's a sound from behind them both as Scott gets up too. "We should've told you everything as soon as we knew you were one of us. But you have to understand that there's really nothing left of the people they were. They're kaiju now. And we need to stop them before they tear any more families apart."

"Okay," Raleigh says, voice rough. "You're right."

There's a sound like a rush of wind, feathers and waves, and Herc turns around to see, to watch the wings stretch out, filling more space than they had before. 

"Fuck..." A mutter from Scott, who's seeing this for the first time.

Herc smiles, though his features are still pale and tight with remembered pain, and nods gently. "Knew you'd figure it out."


End file.
